Middlesbrough 1 Tottenham Hotspur 1

TWO weeks ago, Gareth Southgate received a message from his former Aston Villa boss, John Gregory, and wrote it on the notice board at Middlesbrough's training ground. It read: "Tough times don't last. Tough people do'. If it remains there until May, it could well provide a succinct seven-word summation of Middlesbrough's season.

These are tough times at the Riverside and, if the mood of mounting discontent that provided the backdrop to Saturday's 1-1 draw with Tottenham is anything to go by, they are only going to get tougher.

A first point in five league matches should have represented something of an achievement after Middlesbrough trailed to Darren Bent's 35th-minute opener, but the boos that accompanied both the half-time and full-time whistles spoke of expectations that are growing increasingly out of kilter with reality.

When Southgate took over at the Riverside last June, one of his primary ambitions was to repair the bond between supporters and club that had been broken by his predecessor, Steve McClaren.

In the main, he has been successful, but Saturday's events suggest the relationship remains fragile. Middlesbrough's supporters demand cavalier football and, to his credit, Southgate has remodelled his side in an attempt to provide it. The club's position, however, demands results.

Managing those twin demands is likely to be Southgate's toughest task in the remainder of the season. As his players will no doubt attest in response to his message, times don't get much tougher than when you are being barracked by your own fans.

"I thought John's text was very apt because of the position we are in," said the Middlesbrough manager," who was careful not to bemoan the crowd's reaction, which included specific criticism of both Mark Schwarzer and Stewart Downing.

"Sometimes a football field is the worst place in the world to be when the team is in a bad run of form.

"It's easy to have splits in the camp, or for people to get dejected and lose their enthusiasm if you are in the middle of a bad run. Yes, the reaction of the crowd at the end was negative, but it's important that the whole club stays together at a time like this.

"I feel the players are very together, but it's tough for them. A lot of them have not experienced this, even some of the older ones, but we will come through it and, when we do, we will remember everybody that was with us at the time and learn plenty about the people who were not."

This is certainly no time for shrinking violets and, while Middlesbrough have still not tasted victory since September 1, there was enough passion and commitment in Saturday's second-half revival to ensure optimism is not abandoned altogether.

Trailing to Bent's first-half opener - Spurs' £16m striker drilled a low 18-yard strike past Schwarzer as Chris Riggott, playing instead of the injured Jonathan Woodgate, failed to make a challenge - it would have been easy for the home side's players to have retreated into their shells after the interval.

Instead, they displayed a dogged determination that augurs well for the challenges ahead. With the tireless Gary O'Neil leading by example after being handed the captain's armband, and the feisty Lee Cattermole justifying his inclusion ahead of the axed George Boateng, Boro's midfielders gradually forced an equally edgy Spurs side deeper into their own half.

Jeremie Aliadiere almost levelled the scores with a near-post header that Paul Robinson tipped around the upright, but the equaliser eventually came from the most unlikely of sources.

Luke Young's first Middlesbrough goal had been an own goal at West Ham - his second will be a contender for the Premier League's goal of the season. Racing onto a loose ball 25 yards out, the full-back smashed a searing drive that arrowed in to the top left-hand corner of the net.

"It was an absolutely fantastic strike," said Southgate. "And it was crucial that we got something from the game because we had to stop the rot. We have to chip away bit by bit and we have to take some positives from the way we responded to going a goal behind.

"I know people are not going to be jumping up and down at the end of it, but we have to deal with that."

In fact, Middlesbrough's supporters were jumping up and down in the latter stages, it was just that their reaction had more to do with frustration than glee. Urging their side to push forward at every opportunity, fury erupted whenever a player chose to play it safe.

Two seasons ago, McClaren's Middlesbrough were criticised when they dribbled the ball towards the corner flag to protect a goalless opening-day draw against Liverpool. That was inexcusable, this was far easier to explain.

"I think it was just a reflection of the situation we're in and the tension it creates," said Southgate.

"We were reluctant to push forward, but that was just a reflection of the run we've been having."

Tough times, tough measures. It could be a case of 'Tough if you don't like it' in the weeks and months ahead.