KEVIN Blackwell revealed the crucial impact of absent boss Neil Warnock as Middlesbrough fought back to grab a 1-1 draw against Cherries.

Dominic Solanke’s 38th-minute back-heel looked set to maintain the visitors’ 100 per cent start to the season before substitute Marcus Browne headed the equaliser 10 minutes from time.

Warnock watched the game from his home in Cornwall where he is isolating after testing positive for coronavirus this week, but he still managed to pass on a match-saving message to his assistant.

Ashley Fletcher had been helped off injured after 68 minutes and Blackwell said: “Neil had a feeling and said, ‘Let’s have a look at Browney’, and it was a good shout.

“With the technology now, he (Warnock) had a chat to the boys before the warm-up and had a chat with them at the end and he was proud of the performance.

“He hardly called throughout the game because the performance was there.”