Dael Fry and his fellow Middlesbrough defenders are benefiting from having Jonathan Woodgate back on the Rockliffe training pitches, says Michael Carrick.

Fry was immense at Blackpool on Tuesday night, helping Boro keep their first clean sheet since Carrick's appointment, with the Teessider building an impressive centre-half partnership with summer signing Darragh Lenihan.

It's been an up and down season for Fry, who surprisingly found himself out of the team at the start of the season when Chris Wilder was in charge.

But under Carrick Fry is once again a key man for Boro, with the head coach's right hand man Woodgate known to be a big fan of the 25-year-old. And Fry, Lenihan and the rest of Boro's defenders are profiting from Woodgate's return, says the boss.

"There are not many better than Woody and how he sees the game and what he achieved in the game and therefore that experience that he can pass on," said Carrick.

"He’s had a bit of everything in his career Woody and so he can pass all that on to Dael as well as all the other boys every day. It’s more the drip-feeding information rather than any big sit-downs. It’s just constant little bits and I’m sure Dael appreciates that."

Fry has impressed Carrick, who believes his first choice centre-half pairing are bringing the best out of each other. But the improved defensive effort in recent games isn't just down to the backline.

Carrick said: “He (Fry) has done very well. I think game by game you can see him growing, he’s a big lad anyway, but you can see him growing in terms of assurance and presence and a bit of confidence within his game. 

"Together with Darragh [Lenihan] I think they complement each other very well. I think a lot of it comes from us defending well as a team and having your layers of protection, starting from the boys up top. 

"So it does make it easier for the boys at the back when they’ve got those layers of protection. But Dael has been a real presence for us - not just in defending but on the ball and helping us play out from the back and set the tone. That’s both the centre-halves because I’ve been really pleased with both of them."