MIDDLESBROUGH: Garry Monk warns his Boro players - 'This cannot be another false dawn'

Boro returned to winning ways as goals from Martin Braithwaite and Patrick Bamford secured a 2-0 win over Ipswich Town that lifted Monk’s side back up to eighth position in the Championship table.

The win came courtesy of one of the Teessiders’ most accomplished performances of the season, and having been forced to listen to mounting speculation over his position as Boro boss in the wake of defeats to Derby County and Bristol City, Monk was able to soak up the acclaim of the Riverside crowd at the final whistle.

However, there have been previous occasions this season when Boro looked to have turned a corner, only for subsequent matches to send them back to square one. Back-to-back wins in September were followed by a six-match winless run, while a sequence of three successive victories in October and November was followed by three defeats in the space of four games.

Boro face pre-Christmas trips to Millwall and Sheffield Wednesday before rounding off the year with home games against Bolton Wanderers and Aston Villa, and while he was delighted with his players’ response at the weekend, Monk accepts the improvement has to spark a sustained recovery.

“We were on top throughout, and it was a step forward in terms of showing the possibilities of what we can be,” said the Boro boss. “Of course, I still think we can be a lot better and there’s a lot more to come, but as I’ve said to the players, we have to learn the lessons from the last few weeks.

“We’ve taken steps forward already this season, and then shot ourselves in the foot and taken a few steps backwards. What’s important is that we have another opportunity having taken another step forward, and we have to work doubly hard to make sure that we build some more momentum in the next game and then keep adding to that and growing that confidence. If we can get that to grow, I think we all know what we’re capable of.”

Saturday had the potential to be an awkward afternoon, with questions having been asked of Monk’s position in the wake of Boro’s shoddy showing at Bristol City.

Instead, the home side were bright and positive from the off, and fully merited the lead they secured through Braithwaite’s fourth goal of the season on the stroke of half-time.

The recalled Bamford added a second goal six minutes after the break, and while Boro were unable to add to their tally in the remainder of the game, they spent the rest of the second half playing some of their slickest and most confident football of the season.

Monk was always confident his players boasted the ability and mental fortitude to ride out the gathering storm, and is hoping both qualities remain at the fore during the busy festive period.

“I’ve said all along I’m confident in this group, but over time you gradually get to know them,” he said. “I believe in them totally. I know where they can get to, and I believe we will get there.

“Of course, there are bumps in the road. We’ve had ups and downs, and a lot of them have been self-inflicted. It’s frustrating and it holds you back, and quite rightly, some negativity comes with that. Your job is to stay focused.

“It’s difficult sometimes for players, but credit to them, they produced a response and a result. The lesson needs to be learned though. We need to use this to build. We’ve done that before, but then shot ourselves in the foot. This step forward has to be built on. There is a determination to do that.”

If there was a frustration on Saturday, it was that Boro did not claim the additional second-half goals their play deserved, but with the need for a victory absolutely paramount, Monk was not about to criticise his players for being reluctant to take too many risks. In time, as results and confidence improve, they should be more willing to remain on the front foot for longer periods of the game.

“When you’re 2-0 up in the last 15 or 20 minutes, part of you stands there and wants them to go for the jugular,” said Monk. “Quite understandably though, I think the players realised at that point that the result was comfortable for us and we could take the three points and that clean sheet.

“Hopefully, we can use that next week to build that momentum, and in a few games time, you’ll see that confidence and belief to sense a situation like that.

“You stand on the sideline and think, ‘Let’s go for it’, but I think it was quite understandable. There was a lot of hard work put into this. There’s been hard work from the start of the season, but in this week especially. We were really keen to give the fans something to shout about.”

Ipswich were above Boro at kick-off, but Mick McCarthy admitted his side finished the afternoon distinctly second best.

However, the visiting manager could not help but wonder what might have happened had his players been able to get to the half-time break on level terms.

The home fans were beginning to display a degree of frustration in the closing few minutes of the first half, but the tension was lifted as Ipswich’s failure to deal with Stewart Downing’s right-wing cross enabled Braithwaite to slam home the opener from close range.

“I thought we let them off the hook in the 44th minute, and then we let them off the hook again six minutes into the second half,” said McCarthy, even though his side failed to record a single attempt on target.

“I don’t think Bart (Bialkowski) had a lot to do before they scored. They had a lot of possession in front of us, but we had a couple of half-chances we should have done better with.

“They were a couple of very poor goals. We didn’t stop the cross for the first one, and then the second one was bonkers from our point of view. Having said that though, it was a £10m striker putting the ball in the net.

“Having given them the second goal, they looked like a bloody good team and we looked like chumps chasing after them. That’s unfair on us, but it was our own downfall, our own undoing.”