Jonathan Woodgate wants to leave 'typical Boro' behind following defeat to Millwall

But skipper Jonathan Woodgate says that despite the setback Boro still have an incentive to finish the season on a high

Jonathan Woodgate believes his side must leave “typical Boro” behind if they are to flourish next season.

After four wins on the bounce - including wins over Burnley, Derby and Brighton - Boro slumped to defeat to lowly Millwall.

“That’s typical Boro,” he said. “Especially this season. We have done well against the big sides and let ourselves down against the ones down at the bottom.

“There’s no getting away from it, we were poor against Millwall.

“The fans showed their displeasure and that’s fair enough. If I could have booed myself I would have.

“We were sloppy all over the pitch. And that’s hard to take.

“There’s been a bit of buzz around the town the last few weeks when we’ve been winning games because people start to believe we can do things ... then it comes along and whacks you in the face.

“I’m sure we will go places next season, I’m positive about that.

“But we have to sort this problem out and become more consistent against the sides battling relegation.

“We have to be more ruthless and make sure we beat these teams.”

But the skipper said that despite the setback Boro still have an incentive to finish the season on a high.

“It is important to win these last few games because we want to win the fans back,” he said. “We want to show we are a good team that are getting better and that we want to go places next season.

“And that means a big finish. We have to give 100% in the next three games. They’ll be tough.

“Reading are fighting for the play-offs and Barnsley and Yeovil are out to beat relegation. We want to make it hard for all of them to reach their goals.”