TONY PULIS has admitted that Middlesbrough will have to cut out the individual errors by the time the new Championship season starts in two weeks’ time after losing 4-3 at Accrington Stanley.

While Pulis, who reiterated he wants to bring new players in before the trip to Millwall on August 4, was not concerned by the result at the Wham Stadium, he would have preferred to have seen a more solid display.

Despite taking the lead when Paddy McNair hit his first since joining from Sunderland in the 16th minute, Accrington cruised into a 3-1 lead by the break courtesy of goals from Mark Hughes, Billy Kee and Kayden Jackson.

Middlesbrough, who also saw Kee miss an earlier penalty before converting a second, made a fight of it in the second half when a Jonny Howson rocket was followed by Adama Traore’s fine equaliser just after the hour.

Rather than build on that Accrington, who won League Two last season and will face Sunderland in December, grabbed a winner with three minutes remaining when Ross Sykes finished off at the back post.

Pulis said: “It was so open, box-to-box, so fitness-wise it is what we were after, we are not after results. We have to get them as fit as we can and a game like this has helped, even though when the season starts we have to be tighter than that.

“We made so many mistakes, individual mistakes, we have to improve on that. That will be a talking point when we get back Monday. I thought the balance went a little when I made the changes, taking Stew Downing and Howson off, but it was a good work out.”

McNair’s goal looked like it had got Middlesbrough off to a fine start. He controlled Downing’s long ball before slotting beyond Jonny Maxted – and there were more chances for him after.

On his Sunderland buy, Pulis said: “Paddy was very good, but he should have scored four goals today. They were all in the box as well. He is not hitting a Jonny Howson one, he was actually in the box.

“When he gets there he has to make sure he finishes them. He will get goals from midfield and that is what we wanted. Jonny has a strike like that in him. We knew they had no chance.”

The defeat also saw striker Rudy Gestede have to withdraw in the first half through injury, which is worrying as Middlesbrough only have Patrick Bamford and Britt Assombalonga as alternatives.

Pulis said: “Rudy has landed twice when he has gone down he has helped his right ankle and then his left one.”

But the Middlesbrough boss, whose side face Rochdale on Tuesday, wants to bring more faces in within the next fortnight, and he has been linked with Icelandic striker Vidar Orn Kjartansson.

Pulis added: “There are a quite a few areas I want to strengthen but I have to get the right players in.”