TONY MOWBRAY wants Middlesbrough to recapture the scintillating first-half form they showed at Peterborough in the Carling Cup earlier in the season as they return to London Road this afternoon.

Boro took charge against Posh right from the off back in August, with Barry Robson and Seb Hines scoring the goals in the opening period that saw the Teessiders ease through to the third round.

Mowbray rates that first-half display as the best football his side have produced this season, and wants a repeat as Boro look to cement their place in the promotion-chasing pack.

Boro go into today’s game in fourth place in the Championship, with Darren Ferguson’s Posh 12th.

“It would be nice to go there and have a similar sort of game and a similar result,” said Mowbray.

“The aim is to go there and do a similar job to the one that we did in the cup.

“The first half-an-hour or 45 minutes was a good as we have played all season, I think, when you consider the football we played and the chances we created.

“But, of course, Peterborough will be looking at it the other way and using that game as a motivational tool to make sure that doesn’t happen.

“They won’t want to get beaten twice at home by the same team in the same season, and we need to be mindful of that.”

Boro maintained their unbeaten home record last weekend with a 2-2 draw against Blackpool, but the fact that Mowbray’s men led twice meant there was a real sense of frustration at being held at the Riverside for the sixth time this season.

And the manager wants his players to channel that frustration into making amends this afternoon.

“Our job is to continue in a similar vein to last weekend, because I thought we played really well against Blackpool,” he said. “We didn’t quite get the result we wanted, but there was some good play and we created a lot of opportunities.

“It was frustrating and of course the team was disappointed at dropping points at home, but I would be more concerned if players weren’t concerned about dropping points.

“We have players with passion. I have no problems with raised voices and strong opinions.

“We need to channel that frustration and energy into this game. It would be great if we could go there and get a victory.”

Posh are set to include one-time Boro transfer target George Boyd in their ranks tomorrow, almost two years after Gordon Strachan failed in a bid to prise him away from London Road on loan with a view to a £2m permanent deal.

Mowbray also rates the winger highly and admits that his side will have to find a way to keep the Scot under control.

He said: “He is a very talented player and I know a lot about George Boyd.

“He can travel with the ball, has good balance, play off both feet, he is a talent.

“A lot of clubs have asked about him, but he was priced too high for Gordon.”

Peterborough have yet to keep a clean sheet this season and have won just one of their last five games, but boss Ferguson believes his side will have learned their lesson after to Boro in the cup.

He said: “Middlesbrough are an excellent side in excellent form. They play with three centre-backs away from home and try to catch the opposition on the break.”

Boro will be without Kevin Thomson (hamstring) while striker Marvin Emnes (ankle) is a doubt, but Justin Hoyte could be in the squad after recovering from a hamstring problem.