Joe Nicholson's verdict: The positives and negatives Middlesbrough can take from Nottingham Forest and Leeds displays

Victory over a promotion-chasing Nottingham Forest side would have given the Teessiders a major boost in the battle to beat the drop. They were three minutes away from doing so, only to be denied by a late Lewis Grabban equaliser.

Woodgate felt the goal should have been disallowed for a foul on goalkeeper Aynsley Pears, yet the general consensus was Grabban did nothing wrong.

The Forest frontman stood his ground before flicking the ball past Pears and into Boro’s net.

After composing himself for his post-match press conference, Woodgate disagreed: “Nine out of 10 times that goal doesn’t count so I thought it was a bad decision from the referee,” he said.

Whether he had a point or not, the end result was a Forest leveller which extended Boro’s Championship winless run to 10 games.

Three points here would have been huge in the battle to beat the drop. The Teessiders would have climbed three places ahead of Stoke, Charlton and Wigan.

As it stands, they remain in the relegation zone ahead of Saturday’s pivotal trip to Charlton and have 10 games to save their season.

If they play like they did against Forest, many will fancy Boro to stay up.

Like against Leeds, the Teessiders looked comfortable in a 4-2-3-1 formation and matched a side who are battling for promotion this season.

The system allows Hayden Coulson to operate in a more advanced position, and the lively flanker produced another man of the match display here.

In a disappointing season, unearthing Coulson’s vast potential has been one of the highlights for Boro this campaign.

The 21-year-old was a constant threat against Forest, regularly driving the side forward with his lung-busting runs, one of which was converted by Lewis Wing for Boro’s second goal.

That move capped off a remarkable turnaround on the stroke of half-time after Ryan Yates had opened the scoring for Forest.

Rudy Gestede, recalled to the starting XI following injuries to Britt Assombalonga and Ashley Fletcher, then drew the hosts level five minutes before the break.

The towering frontman may have his limitations but offered a physical presence up top which Boro utilised.

From there, the Teessiders were keeping Sabri Lamouchi’s side at arm’s length before Grabban’s late leveller.

At a key moment Boro’s players appeared to freeze as they switched off from a corner. It’s worth remembering they haven’t closed out a victory for some time.

Yet despite the positives, Woodgate’s side remain in the bottom three after one of their better performances this season.

If they play like that for the remaining 10 games, they will have enough to beat the drop. Yet recent displays have been inconsistent.

Against Luton and Barnsley, Woodgate's side didn’t turn up for the fight – hence the reason they are in this mess.

With just 10 games to go, the margin for error is decreasing by the week.