BORO'S Chris Riggott was the top-scoring defender in this week's Actim Index, the official player ratings system of the Barclays Premier League.

The 27-year-old earned his highest individual match score of the campaign after netting with a bullet header in the 2-0 defeat of Portsmouth, taking his season's match average to 12 points per game.

The former Derby man has made just nine appearances this season, but his average is the best in the squad - topping the 10 points per match averaged by Stewart Downing, who is the club's highest-placed player in the Index in 61st position.

His defensive partner David Wheater also produced a flawless display resulting in his team of the week inclusion.

Only two more Boro men sit in the top 100, defender Luke Young (72) and goalkeeper Mark Schwarzer (76)

The Actim Index is calculated using a unique mathematical formula that rates each player's contribution be it goals, shots, passes, dribbles, tackles, crosses, saves, clearances, blocks, interceptions, assists, clean sheets, time on the pitch or number of points gained by the team, with marks deducted for red and yellow cards.