PERHAPS, in the next international break, the tables should be turned. Instead of Middlesbrough’s players spending time at RAF Leeming, maybe the Air Force should send some of their new recruits to Rockliffe Park so they can learn how to be part of a successful team. When it comes to putting the needs of the whole above individual ambition, Boro appear to have it cracked.

Whether it was Adam Clayton selflessly covering every blade of grass at the base of midfield or Jordan Hugill taking a clattering in stoppage time as he held off three opponents deep in his own half, Saturday’s battling win at Brentford was a perfect exemplar of collective spirit.

Yes, some of Boro’s attacking play was easy on the eye. Mo Besic’s floated through ball that helped set up Hugill’s opener was weighted to perfection, and Dael Fry’s cross for Marcus Tavernier’s headed second would have been the envy of any winger.

Ultimately, though, the most impressive aspect of the Teessiders’ fourth Championship away win of the season was the manner in which it was secured in the face of some spirited late pressure from their opponents.

There was a palpable determination to ensure Alan Judge’s late strike was nothing more than a consolation, and a shared sense of resolve that has already played a key role in Boro’s surge up the table. It helps explain why Tony Pulis’ side have conceded seven fewer goals than anyone else in the division, and must be the envy of the teams that will be battling against them for a top-two spot in the remaining six months of the season.

“You need that togetherness,” said Clayton, who claimed the Man of the Match honours as his effort and industry established a benchmark his team-mates strove to match. “In this league, you’ve got to dig in, and if you can build that character, then it’s massive.

“It’s important now, but it’s even more important if you can get to those last ten games and be right in the thick of it, because in that situation, it becomes a different sport.

“You need so much experience, and hopefully it’ll help that so many of us have been through that before. The togetherness should also help because it really does get you through.”

Fostering that sense of solidarity was the aim of this month’s trip to RAF Leeming, a training excursion that was designed to take Middlesbrough’s players out of their mental comfort zone.

Mobile phones were banned, leadership roles were turned on their head, and players that might otherwise have been reluctant to voice their opinions were encouraged to speak out. Some might scoff at the idea of successful footballers being set a series of challenges that might ordinarily be more applicable to a middle-management corporate away day, but for all that he might have a reputation of being a managerial dinosaur, Pulis has never been afraid to step outside the traditional confines of his sport.

Maybe Middlesbrough’s youngsters would have been happy ordering around their team-mates in the closing stages of Saturday’s game anyway. Perhaps, though, their willingness to speak out was a reflection of their air-force training.

“There were things we learned last week that maybe helped,” said Clayton. “The communication, the graft and the way in which everyone in the group hopefully feels a bit more confident and comfortable communicating and leading. Dael was really shouting out orders, and that’s great. He was telling people to get tight and get up the pitch, and he needs to do that.

“It wasn’t a physical break, it was more a test of the mental side of things, so a few of us struggled to be fair! It was a good trip. It got people talking and communicating, and some of the people that maybe aren’t normally as vocal as others, it got them in a position where they had to do that.

“They were chosen as captains and leaders, and they had to communicate. I wouldn’t say it brought people out of their shell, but it definitely made them communicate a bit more.”

Organisation is another key strength of this Boro side, and not for the first time this season, the strength of the understanding within the squad enabled Pulis’ players to produce an exemplary away display.

The visitors eased themselves into the game in the opening 45 minutes, successfully negating Brentford’s patient, passing style by hassling and harrying their opponents as soon as they were on the ball and maintaining a rock-solid defensive line that rendered the Championship’s leading goalscorer, Neal Maupay, utterly ineffective.

Hugill spurned a decent first-half opportunity by shooting straight at Brenftord goalkeeper Darren Bentley, but when the Teessiders needed to display a more clinical streak at the start of the second half, they were able to make the most of the chances that came their way.

Besic’s perfectly-weighted through ball released Jonny Howson into the area 11 minutes after the break, and despite the attention of two opposition defenders, the midfielder was able to roll a square ball into the path of Hugill, who swept home his third goal in the space of two games.

Six minutes later, and Boro were doubling their lead, with Fry swinging over an inviting cross, and Tavernier stealing between two defenders to head home. Tavernier made his first league start for more than a year in place of Martin Braithwaite, who was left out of the match-day squad after his international exertions, and the 19-year-old performed impressively at both ends of the pitch. Pulis might claim he is not yet ready for regular Championship action, but many more performances like this, and the teenager will make it increasingly difficult for his manager to maintain his current stance.

Leading by two goals, Boro looked home and hosed, but after Darren Randolph parried Henrik Dalsgaard’s free-kick, some uncharacteristic sloppiness enabled Brentford to score. Boro’s defence switched off from a short corner, enabling Alan Judge to drill a low shot into the bottom corner.

The hosts threw men forward in search of an equaliser, but while Randolph made another good save to deny substitute Josh Dasilva, there was never really a point at which the visitors’ lead looked vulnerable.

“The good thing is there’s definitely a lot more to come,” said Clayton. “We’re second in the table, without having blown anybody away. The fact that we’re second and we don’t feel like we’re 100 per cent, putting amazing performances in, has to be positive”