It was a cross that may have only served to increase the anger. Shea Charles’s extra-time play-off semi-final winner against Middlesbrough was inadvertent, an attempt to find a teammate that reaped a greater reward. It was scarcely the product of planning. There may be an irony in that, given that Southampton’s attempts to prepare for the first leg involved – allegedly – a staff member hiding in the bushes at Boro’s training ground, looking for information in illicit ways. Illegal, too, given the EFL rulebook.
Spygate 2.0 has become the biggest crisis in play-off history. The EFL could have been forgiven for celebrating when Riley McGree put Middlesbrough ahead at St Mary’s on Tuesday; not from bias, but because it threatened to avoid the most damaging scenario. Which, with Southampton prevailing and now favourites to beat Hull at Wembley on 23 May, is of a tainted triumph, a promotion aided by – to use a word Middlesbrough manager Kim Hellberg has deployed – cheating.
