Southampton were dealt a hammer blow in their pursuit of automatic promotion after dropping points at home to Middlesbrough this afternoon. Southampton were seeking their third straight Championship win after securing victories over Birmingham City and Sunderland before the international break. Russell Martin‘s men know that if they are to get automatic promotion, they can ill afford to drop points. The Saints entered their clash against Middlesbrough nine points off the pace with two games in hand, meaning they couldn’t afford to drop any points this afternoon. Sadly, Southampton were made to…