AFTER the disappointment of relinquishing the only remaining unbeaten run in the Championship, defender Tony McMahon thinks addressing Middlesbrough’s average home form could be the perfect fillip for the rest of the season.

Tuesday night’s 2-0 loss at Nottingham Forest brought to an end a club record start to the campaign of 11 matches unbeaten.

But the performance had an air of inevitability surrounding it on the back of four successive draws in which Middlesbrough had managed to score just once, even if they had kept three clean sheets along the way.

With the excellent start to the campaign over, there will be a drive in the next 48 hours to prepare a squad for a fixture with fourth-placed Derby County on Saturday that could quickly put them back on track.

The Rams, level on points with Boro and second placed West Ham, will be optimistic about their own chances this weekend because Middlesbrough have been struggling to win on Teesside turf.

But McMahon, aware of a record that reads just one win from their opening six at the Riverside, thinks the fact the match is at home represents the ideal opportunity to give their season a huge lift after suffering a first league defeat.

“We want to play well and win games in front of our fans,” said McMahon. “I want to play at home every week, even if we have not been winning, there’s no mental aspect to it.

“It’s easy to see we have had too many draws at home. We don’t change anything. We play the way we have been because I don’t think we have had bad performances at home, we just haven’t got results – or more to the point, wins.

“We have had a few draws and if we can turn those in to wins then we would be flying high. At the minute we are not right at the top and that’s been the reason really. It will come.”

Middlesbrough have drawn their last four games at the Riverside, but stuttering form has not really affected their promotion chances. Even though the league has tightened up below them, they remain in third place.

Manager Tony Mowbray, who has strengthened his ranks with the short-term acquisition of Nigerian striker Bart Ogbeche, would have preferred to be close to leaders Southampton, who have a five point gap at the top.

But given the number of departures he has had to deal with, with very little incoming deals, Mowbray has to be satisfied overall with the way Middlesbrough have opened the campaign almost a year on from when he took over from Gordon Strachan. His players share the view.

“I don’t think Tuesday’s performance was a fall out from the run of home games and the run of draws, I really don’t,” said McMahon. “Tuesday we didn’t turn up, we know that. We didn’t perform, it’s simple.

“We can’t afford too many nights like that if we want to challenge at the top of the division.

Games come thick and fast and we have to focus on putting it right.

“There have been massive changes. The new manager has come in and we are playing better. Funny how it’s all doom and gloom again after losing our first game!

“It’s third against fourth on Saturday now and it’s a massive game. We have to put it right. We are on home soil and we must take the game to Derby. We have not won many at home and we have to start winning.

“Derby have had a good start, right in the mix, they will know we have been playing well so they will prepare well for us.”

It was no coincidence that Middlesbrough’s first defeat of the campaign was on the night when both Matthew Bates and Rhys Williams – two of Mowbray’s key defensive men – were ruled out through injury.

Their respective foot and groin problems could keep them out of the visit of Derby too, with midfielder Kevin Thomson also a doubt with a tight hamstring. Barry Robson is also suspended for the game.

McMahon admits the absence of Bates and Williams, who have been playing alongside him in a three-man defence, were factors and he hopes neither will be out for too long.

“Matty and Rhys have been a massive part of what we have been doing away from home, no disrespect to the others who came in,” said McMahon.

“Hopefully they will not be long term and we can get them back in the team as quickly as possible.

“We don’t want to lose games after being in such good form and Tuesday was disappointing. But we know we didn’t perform at all at Forest.

We weren’t solid like we have been and they pressed us and were better than us on the night. It’s all about forgetting about now and putting things right.”