A staggering Dean Whiteston decision, how Middlesbrough reacted to Dael Fry injury plus defensive setbacks: Blackburn Rovers verdict

The post-match press conferences were dominated by one incident.

Neil Warnock doesn’t hesitate when letting officials know they’ve made a mistake – yet the Middlesbrough boss was left seething after his side’s 1-0 defeat by Blackburn at the Riverside.

His anger was understandable. The visitors should have been reduced to 10 men and conceded a penalty after Rovers defender Jarrad Branthwaite swung his right boot into the face of Dael Fry – leaving a nasty cut below the Boro man’s eye.

A staggering decision

The pictures and replays were disturbing as blood poured out from Fry's face. Astonishingly, there was no further action. It was a staggering decision from referee Dean Whitestone as the game continued 11 vs 11.

Both managers, Warnock and Tony Mowbray, admitted the challenge wasn’t intentional. Still, that shouldn’t have prevented a red card and a spot kick.

Mowbray defended Branthwaite after the match, saying the Everton loanee was only an 18-year-old kid who wouldn’t want to harm an opponent.

That may be true, and Warnock’s reaction to seek out the defender before telling him, ‘you should be ashamed’ appeared to cross the line.

Yet clearly the youngster has to be told he can’t go swinging his boot around at that height when players are around him. ‘He’s a millimetre from his eyeball being taken out,’ fumed Warnock after the full-time whistle.

Thankfully, after he was substituted off and taken to hospital, Fry appeared to be in good spirits, given the circumstances, as Boro posted a picture of the defender on their Twitter account after the match.

But when the dust had settled on proceedings, this felt like a missed opportunity.

An inconsistent run

Joe Rothwell’s 63rd-minute winner was the difference between the two sides, meaning the Teessiders missed the chance to go level on points with sixth-place Bournemouth.

The result only adds to a run of inconsistency which has kept Boro on the cusp of the play-off places rather than in the thick of a promotion fight.

In their last six league games Warnock’s side have recorded the following results: Win (4-1 vs Birmingham), loss (2-1 vs Sheffield Wednesday), win (3-1 vs Wycombe), loss (1-0 vs Birmingham), win (2-1 vs Nottingham Forest) and loss (1-0 vs Blackburn).

What is commendable during the course of the campaign is Boro’s ability to bounce back from disappointing results, and Warnock’s side have only lost back-to-back league games once this season.

That is encouraging ahead of this week’s meeting with Rotherham, yet the Teessiders have also found it hard to build on impressive performances, like the one at Forest, in recent weeks. It is proving costly.

Frustrations in the final third

Of course losing one of your best players at an early stage didn’t help against Blackburn, yet you couldn’t strongly argue Boro did enough to win the game.

In fairness, the hosts did react well after Fry left the field. They tried to press the visitors high up the pitch when Rovers played out from the back, while full-backs Marc Bola and Djed Spence were encouraged to bomb forward.

Yet aside from a Britt Assombalonga free-kick which stung the palms of goalkeeper Thomas Kaminski, the Blackburn stopper was relatively untroubled in the opening 45 minutes.

Aside from Anfernee Dijksteel, who was missing with a minor illness, Warnock named the same starting XI which won 2-1 against Forest just four days earlier.

At the City Ground, Boro controlled the game after taking an early lead, before exploiting space to hit their opponents on the counter attack.

Against Blackburn, though, the gaps weren’t as obvious, in what turned out to be a physical and bruising encounter.

Paddy McNair delivered a couple of excellent crosses into the visitors’ box, both from corners and open play, but Boro’s inability to score from set-pieces proved frustrating yet again.

The Teessiders’ best spell actually came just after half-time when Marcus Tavernier cut in from the right and his low effort was saved.

Assombalonga then saw a close-range header parried out by Kaminski before Nathan Wood, Fry’s replacement, hit the post from a tight angle.

In a game of fine margins, that could have made all the difference. Boro have lost just once after taking the lead this season.

From there, Boro stumbled, and after reacting well to Fry’s injury, they responded poorly after falling behind.

First goal proves decisive

Rothwell’s winner was a disappointing goal to concede too. Wood was drawn out by Adam Armstrong, who quickly returned Harvey Elliott’s pass to send the winger down the right flank.

Elliott raced away from Marc Bola before his low cross found Rothwell alone in the penalty area. The latter then reacted far quicker than both Jonny Howson and Spence to convert.

With over 25 minutes left to play, Boro hardly threatened from that point, while the side looked vulnerable at the back.

It was encouraging to see Ashley Fletcher make his first appearance since September following a lengthy hamstring injury, and the striker was introduced as the hosts pushed for an equaliser.

Yet after changing formation to play with two strikers, Boro appeared to lose their shape in the closing stages and Blackburn could have added a second through Armstrong on the counter attack.

Boro will hope to have Fry available as soon as possible due to their lack of defensive options, yet Warnock will know his side can’t linger on the weekend’s setback.

The Teessiders have responded well to adversity this season and must do so again when Rotherham visit the Riverside.

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