Marquee signing Will Lankshear notched a second-half double as Championship promotion hopefuls Middlesbrough fought back to kick off their campaign with a hard-fought 2-1 victory and inflict a first defeat in eight and a half months on newly-promoted Lincoln City.
The Imps – playing their first second-tier match in 65 years – made a strong start and opened the scoring in the 12th minute through Adam Reach but former Tottenham forward Lankshear marked his first league appearance since his much-hyped move to the Riverside by equalising just after the hour and then poking in a stoppage-time winner.
It was a devastating end for spirited Lincoln as a run of 29 games undefeated in all competitions since early December was finally brought to a halt.