All of Boro's 21 wins so far this season have been vital but is there one that stands out with added importance?
That's what our Boro writers have been discussing as they look back and pick out their most pivotal victory of the campaign so far.
From the superbly executed 1-0 win at Cardiff to the hugely impressive dismantling of Nottingham Forest, read which games have been selected and why and then give us your verdict.
Anthony Vickers - Boro 3-0 Nottingham Forest
Boro's Boxing Day bonanza was a mould-breaking match, not least because it was the first win over old foes Forest since decimalisation.
Forest had not lost at the Riverside. In fact they were undefeated on Teesside since before Jack Charlton took charge so just beating them at all was one powerful ancient hoodoo smashed.
So to beat them so emphatically - a clinical 3-0 dismantling - carried considerable cultural weight on a day that saw a lot of deeply ingrained scepticism swept aside.
It was a game that buried a lot of old ghosts. Boro showed they could bounce back from a bruising defeat.
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They had been convincingly beaten 2-0 at Ipswich to the low level sound of “here we go...” predictions the wheels had come off the first time they played a decent side.
It also killed off any pre-emptive moaning about a “typical Boro” post-Christmas slump: Boro went on a run of nine league games unbeaten including a run of five straight wins and threw in a FA Cup win at Manchester City to boot.
And bubbling Boro also proved that they didn’t “always” bottle it in front of a big crowd. Far from it.
The game drew a sell-out 33,000 gate and the pressure was on for Boro to deliver, to show the annual expats and the curious extra 15,000 who had turned up exactly what the fuss was about.
And they did that. In style.
They played with panache and passion, zipped the ball about with purpose and scored three good goals to send the fans away happy.
That game ended an old hoodoo, built a platform for a promotion charge and also won over a lot of hardened cynics.
Philip Tallentire - Brentford 0-1 Boro
It was a far from convincing performance, but Boro showed plenty of guts and determination to win a vital six-pointer at high-flying Brentford.
With the benefit of hindsight, we now know that the Bees had something of a wobble in February, but they went into the televised game against Aitor Karanka's team at Griffin Park full of confidence after recording three successive wins.
It wasn't hard to see why they'd taken nine points from nine in a one-sided first half that the hosts dominated for 43 minutes.
By that stage, had the encounter been a boxing match, battered Boro would have been given a standing count, such had been the home team's dominance.
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They created, and missed, three golden opportunities to take the lead and battling Boro made them pay a high price for their generosity.
The match turned on its head late in the first half when Ben Gibson lofted a pass forward which, with time to clear, defender Harlee Dean inexplicably opted to leave to his keeper and that allowed Patrick Bamford time to nip in and flick the ball past the goalie, who then fouled the striker inside the box.
The ref immediately pointed to the spot and Grant Leadbitter smashed home the penalty.
The goal knocked the stuffing out of Brentford and Boro should have added to their lead in the second half with the hosts leaving gaps to exploit as they pushed for an equaliser.
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Deep into stoppage time Dimi Konstantopoulos denied Brentford a last gasp leveller and ensured all three points went back to Teesside.
Defeat would have left Boro fifth in the table ahead, four points outside the top two with a formidably tough February (seven games in 22 days) to negotiate.
Victory, though, ensured Karanka's men ended the weekend third, one point adrift of the top two.
The win at Brentford proved Boro could win ugly, a habit that is the cornerstone of any successful promotion campaign.
Jonathan Taylor - Cardiff 0-1 Boro
The long trip to South Wales may not have been the most appetising away trip of the season, but for Boro it was one of the most important.
Ahead of the Cardiff match in September, Boro had bounced back from consecutive home defeats to Sheffield Wednesday and Reading with a 2-1 win at Huddersfield.
But it wasn't convincing, with Grant Leadbitter's late penalty making amends after Jon Stead's inevitable late leveller.
So Aitor Karanka's side arrived in Wales as something of an unknown quantity.
They were languishing in mid-table and came up against a team recently relegated from the Premier League.
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But Kike's strike after only 95 seconds set the tone, and after then it was a defensive masterclass that has become so common under Karanka.
Boro even survived seven minutes of added time, but held firm.
It may not be one of the more memorable results this season, but it was an important one.
It proved that Boro could mix it with the division's heavyweights, and could look up towards the play-off places, rather than another mid-table struggle.
And it was the first time this season that Karanka's blueprint reaped rewards.
Stay tight defensively, be clinical on the break, and everyone absolutely everything until the very final second.
It may be quickly forgotten in the history books should Boro get promoted this season, but that night in South Wales can't be underestimated.
Dominic Shaw - Huddersfield 1-2 Boro
Consecutive home defeats to Sheffield Wednesday and Reading weren't in the script.
In fact, after Boro managed to put the loss at Leeds behind them by winning at Bolton, two winnable home games in a week offered the perfect opportunity to kick on and follow the leading pack at the top.
But with nil points to show after a frustrating week, early season optimism was beginning to wane.
International breaks are frustrating at the best of times. This one was horrible!
How important then that Boro put those defeats behind them when Championship action resumed with a trip to Huddersfield.
But it wasn't just the result that would prove so pivotal, it was the manner of the victory.
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We knew Boro had the players to mount a promotion push, but the last-gasp win at the John Smith's proved they had the stomach for the fight as well.
After seemingly throwing away the points by conceding the predictable late sucker punch, inspirational skipper Grant Leadbitter kept a cool head from the spot.
Had Boro failed to win at Huddersfield, they'd have faced the prospect of a tough trip to Cardiff (still promotion candidates at this early stage) on the back of three games without a win.
They say leagues can't be won in September. True. But they can be lost and doubts could easily have started to creep in.
Instead, that victory at Huddersfield inspired Boro to go on an eight-game unbeaten run.
Should Boro win promotion they'll look back on a number of games this season as crucial stepping stones along the way.
The win at Huddersfield was the first of the campaign and still the most important.
Andrew Glover - Boro 4-1 Ipswich
The resounding scoreline didn't tell the whole story.
There were ten games to go and the early kick off with the Tractor Boys officially heralded the start of the season's business end.
It was critical Boro got their 'Week of Destiny' off to a flyer and they were forced to battle their way to a 2-1 lead in the first half before Patrick Bamford's brilliance sealed it.
Ipswich had dominated Boro in the corresponding fixture and came to Teesside with a plan to smother the midfield and suffocate Grant Leadbitter and Adam Clayton.
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For the bulk of the opening period, it worked.
Boro scored the opener before conceding an equaliser after a long stoppage following a serious injury to Town's goalkeeper.
For 20 minutes after their goal Ipswich were on top but Boro held firm and wrestled back the lead from another corner kick routine.
After the break it was almost all about Bamford. He scored two and could have had four.
Patrick Bamford celebrates against Ipswich
It was a big game for the Chelsea forward, back in the middle after publicly declaring it his best position. He delivered and the confidence gained from his brace sent him into the next vital game at Derby flying.
At the other end of the pitch it was a huge afternoon for Jonathan Woodgate. The club captain probably feared he wouldn't play at The Riverside again but was called into action and rolled back the years with a performance reeking of class.
The 4-1 finish didn't flatter Boro but neither did it explain just how hard they had to work against a team that have now fought their way back into automatic promotion contention
This was a huge three points when Boro needed them most.
