Boro beaten 1-0 in Libya

Col Gaddafi is building bridges with former foes

English Premier League team Middlesbrough have been beaten 1-0 by the Libyan side, Tripoli.

Tripoli included the son of the Libyan leader Colonel Muammar Gaddafi in its team.

The tournament was the first between a British side and Libya since the bombing of an American Airliner over Lockerbie in Scotland.

It was held to inaugurate a new stadium - the Great Man-Made River Stadium, named after a vast project to provide fresh water through 3,800 kilometres of pipes to the country's barren Mediterranean coast.

An Italian team, Bari, which also took part in the three-way competition lost by the same margin to the Libyan side.

Bari then went on to beat Middlesbrough 2-0 in the final game

Robson and Gascoigne: Boro got official backing

" We are quite pleased to go there and play football", Middlesborough manager Bryan Robson is quoted as saying on the club's web site.

"I think it is great when sport can come into play in these aspects and hopefully it can be of great benefit to all countries concerned."

Criticism

The club acknowledges that there has been criticism of the timing of the two 45 minute games - shortly after the beginning of the trial of two Libyan suspects accused of carrying out the bombing of PanAm flight 103 over the Scottish town of Lockerbie in 1991.

Two hundred and seventy people died in the attack. The trial is being held in a special Scottish court being convened in the Netherlands.

Libya is proud of its "great man made river"

But Robson says his team went to Libya with official encouragement from the UK Government.

"The Home Office wanted us to take on board this trip. Britain and America are trying to get reconciliation pacts going with Libya."

It is not the first time the former England captain has been in Libya. He went as captain of Manchester United in 1985.

The English side included former England star Paul Gascoigne, the most familiar player for Libyan fans.

The others were first-team regulars Gary Pallister, Curtis Fleming, Steve Vickers, Colin Cooper, Gianluca Festa, Robbie Mustoe, Brian Deane and Andy Campbell.