Mark Robins is taking Stoke City to Millwall this weekend in a reunion with former boss Alex Neil

Stoke City players have used a painful defeat to Middlesbrough as a kick up the backside and important lesson they must keep building on, says Mark Robins.

Robins looks back on a 3-1 loss to Boro on February 25 as an aberration but perhaps an important moment, which they followed up with a draw with Watford, last gasp defeat at Coventry and win over Blackburn heading into a clash with Millwall (Saturday, 12.30pm). The big task now is to press on again, which Robins acknowledges has been tough for the team so far this season, with back-to-back wins in the league only once, back in early November.

He said: “The game against Middlesbrough the other week was really disappointing, the goals we conceded were really disappointing, and that was the only game when you thought we hadn’t got anywhere near the level needed. That was because of tactical tweaks or tactical mistakes or leaving ourselves too exposed and we got picked off by a good team, although they had just lost five on the bounce.

“That was a difficult evening for us but you have to try to use that to move forward. You can always do that. You can always pick the bones out of things and find ways to move forward in a more positive way. We’re starting to do that.

But we have a habit of taking one step forward and then taking two back. We have to keep driving forward and that’s the next step for this weekend. Can we go and get back to back wins for the first time in a long time?”

Most Stoke players were given Thursday off after the efforts the previous night but Eric Bocat was back in reporting for duty yesterday morning after going down with a bad dose of cramp in the latter stages.

The diagnosis on Enda Stevens is better than feared too, with Robins reporting “very little damage” after catching a calf strain at the right time. The veteran left-back is likely to be out at Millwall but hopefully won’t spend all that long back in the treatment room.

Robins said: “Turnaround is so fast and recovery is key. If you flip that, Millwall were up at Leeds and travelled in mid-week and had to go all the way back to London. There are difficult and different challenges for everybody so you have to go ahead and get it done, it’s just the recovery in between.

Stoke will be backed by more than 1,200 fans at The Den, where they are looking for their first win since August 2005 and the time of Johan Boskamp.

Robins said: “I thought the game was really good the other night. I loved the light show, the music, I thought the whole event at the start of the game helps. I thought it was really good and the supporters were in really good voice. Last weekend as well they were outstanding. You really need them and you can see it, it’s not just talk. You can see it helping and players are more confident and there’s an appreciation from supporters for the players and certainly from the players to the supporters. That helps hugely.”

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