Finn Azaz (left) has scored nine league goals for Middlesbrough this season
Middlesbrough reignited their faltering Championship play-off hopes by ending a five-match losing run with a morale-boosting victory over Stoke City at the bet365 Stadium.
Victory for Michael Carrick's side ended a horrible run of form since their last win on 21 January, a slump which had seen them drop from fifth to 13th in the table.
The triumph lifted them back up to 11th spot and narrowed the gap to the final play -off position from seven points to four.
Marcus Forss set Boro on track with his first goal since last March only for Bae Jun-Ho to equalise for Stoke just before half-time. But Finn Azaz restored the lead on 52 minutes and Tommy Conway made the points safe 17 minutes from time.
Mark Robins' Potters remain five points above the relegation zone but slipped a place to 20th in the table.
Boro had deserved to take the lead after a bright start, Forss firing an unstoppable shot inside Viktor Johansson's far post from the edge of the box.
Yet Stoke ensured their visitors spent an uncomfortable half-time break, equalising just before the players went in, Bae finishing an excellent move with a side-foot finish.
No one in the Boro dressing room will have sweated more during that break than Conway, who had contrived on the half-hour mark to put a perfect, low cross from Forss over the bar from two yards.
It was a quite astonishing miss but, to his credit, Conway more than made amends in the second half.
First he teed up Azaz for a ninth goal of the league campaign, a left foot shot slammed in from just inside the area to restore Boro's lead.
Then, to complete redemption, Conway exchanged a one-two with the Republic of Ireland international on the edge of the box before calmly side-footing home from 12 yards.
It was noticeable how the normally-reserved Carrick had celebrated all three goals and the victory.
The Boro boss will be further buoyed by a favourable-looking run of five fixtures in March starting with Derby County at home on Saturday and will be believing their play-off hopes are firmly back on.
Stoke City manager Mark Robins speaking to BBC Radio Stoke:
"I'm disappointed. They have lost their last five but there is too much naivety. We make poor decisions at times - which means either a promising move breaks down or we take the wrong option.
"Out of possession we are getting into some really poor positions and some of the players don't understand... if you miss those duels you are out of position and they can hurt you. They are young players and they are making [poor] decisions.
"We have to dust ourselves down before Watford on Saturday. We have 12 games to go and we have to pick up enough points to stay in the division and that's what we have to do this season before we can turn our attention to things that need putting right."
Boro manager Michael Carrick speaking to BBC Radio Tees:
"It wasn't so much the result, it was how we got it and how we played, the expression and that confidence on the back of a run we've had. It would have been easy to go safe but I thought they have done the absolute opposite and shown real personality and class and belief in each other.
"The way the boys bounced back from that moment [the equaliser] which was another moment which could have gone the other way... They could have thought is it a lead we have not capitalised on but no, they doubled down, went forward and scored some really good goals.
"It is just a really, really good night and it has been a long time coming but it is a deserved one. We can take a lot from tonight."
