Scunthorpe 0 Middlesbrough 2: Boyd and McDonald get Boro off the mark

Middlesbrough are beginning to show the green shoots of recovery under Tony Mowbray after registering their first Championship away win of the season.

Boro arrived at Glanford Park with the worst away record in the Football League, but two first-half goals sealed a second successive victory following Saturday's win over Crystal Palace.

Kris Boyd put Mowbray's men in control inside the opening 10 minutes with a simple finish at the far post for his fifth of the season and Scott McDonald curled in the second with 23 minutes gone.

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It could have been a different story had Scunthorpe taken one of three excellent chances in the latter stages of the first period, but the Iron came up against an inspired Jason Steele in the Boro goal.

Boro held on for a victory which saw them move out of the relegation zone, while Scunthorpe reflected on their fifth home defeat of the season.

Having endured such a miserable campaign on the road going into the game, the visitors could not have wished for a better start as they led inside six minutes.

A sweeping move across the field saw Joe Bennett advance past Cliff Byrne and he whipped in a low cross which left Boyd with the simplest of tap-ins at the far post.

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Midway through the first half McDonald gave his side a two-goal advantage. Boyd held the ball up well and laid it off to the former Celtic midfielder who curled his shot in off the post from 22 yards.

Scunthorpe United: Murphy, Byrne, Raynes, Canavan, Nolan, Collins (McDonald 63), Wright (Grant 73), O'Connor, Dagnall (Forte 63), Sears, Woolford. Unused substitutes: Warner, McClenahan, Togwell, Cowan Hall. Booked: Nolan, Byrne, O'Connor.

Middlesbrough: Steele, McMahon, Wheater, Bates, Bennett, O'Neil, Thomson, Arca (Bailey 82), Kink (Hoyte 58), Boyd (Lita 69), McDonald. Unused substitutes: Ripley, Hines, Tavares, Luke Williams.

Referee: Kevin Wright (Cambridgeshire).