Luton Town v Middlesbrough: Will Michael Carrick and Rob Edwards be keeping their powder dry?

Jack Charlton's feted side - one of the most iconic in Boro's history - famously clinched promotion thanks to a David Mills goal in a 1-0 win at Kenilworth Road with the Bedfordshire venue holding happy memories for more seasoned Teessiders.

This time around, it is likely that only one of Boro or Luton will be promoted. Should it finish in a draw tonight, then Sheffield United will effectively be promoted.

Both look highly likely to finish alongside each other in third and fourth - as for the order, no-one is quite sure - with a semi-final second leg on the agenda for each of these sides in the end-of-season lottery ahead of a possible Wembley final meeting if things go well for them.

Given that, many might expect both to keep their powder dry potentially this evening.

Boro chief Michael Carrick, who will be without Aaron Ramsey, Dael Fry, Riley McGree and most likely Marcus Forss and Tommy Smith, said: "Of course, you plan ahead and we've always have a plan of how the season might pan out. There's plans for summer and different leagues and that's not us getting blasé and ahead of ourselves.

"You've got to know what's ahead, really. Wherever and whoever we play against, we know we have got extra games so there's a balance of getting players getting game time so that they are up to speed and getting players back fit again and balancing the squad.

"But at the same point, it's not a ‘pause’ and take our foot ‘off the gas’ because we know what is ahead in a few weeks time. It's about now as well and keeping the momentum and ball rolling and performing well and trying to win. It's a switch you can’t flick on and off.

"Obviously, injuries and squad numbers come into it and we have got to be a bit clever in how we manage that.

"We'll look forward to it and appreciate it's a tough place to go. They've been on a terrific run. Rob (Edwards) has done a fantastic job, so we know the challenge we'll face."

Edwards, interviewed for the Boro post along with Carrick last autumn, insists that Luton will be striving for victory, while they have an outside chance of finishing in the top two.

He added: “We’ll still keep fighting and going for it, we have to while it’s still mathematically possible."There are two things – we want to keep our momentum and we want to keep people fresh and fit."