Steve McClaren is hoping that the events of the week are used as a building block to take the team forward. "We've been in this position before where we've wasted chances to climb the league, and we can't allow that to happen again." he said.
Boro could leapfog over Sunderland and Everton if they win tomorrow and still have a game in hand over all of their rivals.
The team tomorrow is likely to be the same as the one that won at Sunderland.
Gianluca Festa has been given another chance after his public apology. Ugo Ehiogu is definitely out of the game with a groin injury while both Mark Wilson and Szilard Nemeth are also struggling to shake off injuries.
There could be a place for Mark Schwarzer and Alen Boksic on the bench, both have been training well but both are unlikely to feature in the starting line-up.
Please remember to be in your seats early, there will be a minutes silence in rememberence of Finlay Cooper, prior to the kick-off.