Charlie Lee praised his Yeovil Town side for rediscovering their “killer instinct” to complete a double over leaders Stockport County today.
The Glovers’ caretaker boss admitted he had been critical of his side after they failed to put lowly Aldershot Town and W*ymouth to the sword over the Easter period.
Having soaked up pressure for much of the first half, Tom Knowles struck just before the break before Josh Neufville added a second on 55 minutes and then Yeovil managed to hold on for a 2-1 victory.
Speaking to BBC Somerset’s Sheridan Robins after the match, Lee said: “It did not look like (Stockport) had ten men at the end, they were brave, direct and played good football but we dug in and got the win.
“I have criticised the boys for not having that killer instinct you need to win games, we have looked like doing it loads of times but not quite done it, but they got the result today.
He added: “This is the best team in the league and one that would do well in the league above, so they are going to pin you back and they are going to have chances.
“We had to be a bit more defensive and look for counter attacks which we know we are good at and we made them count and could have got a few more.
“They will be disappointed they did not score more, Grant (Smith) made some good saves but we definitely deserved something out of the game, so I was really pleased.”
The boss had special praise for centre-half Max Hunt on his return after more than three months on the sidelines with an ankle injury.
He put in a commanding performance against the visitors’ strike force of ex-Glover Paddy Madden and Scott Quigley, having been brought in to replace Ben Barclay who was unavailable against his parent club.
Lee said: “I’ve got to give a shout out to Hunty who has come back after injury, you are always worried about somebody who has been out for a while, but he headed everything back.
“At this level you are going to do that, especially against a team like Stockport.
“His fitness is good. He’s worked so hard as he always does, so I just hoped he would make it through the 90 minutes because we did not have a natural replacement for him.
“Robbo was the only other option we had on the bench and he’s not had much time either, but they are both ready to play now. Hunty was exceptional.”
Of Luton Town loanee Neufville, he added: “When I see Josh Neufville at his best I am so glad I am retired because I have no interest in playing or training against that guy, he scares the life out of me!
“I am just so glad he is playing for me and I don’t have to play against him. He went through and he looked composed, it was a great finish, but they all did their bit today.”
The boss also revealed that midfielder Lawson D’Ath, who played 86 minutes before being replaced by Alex Bradley, had not trained all week due to illness.
Charlie Wakefield was missing through illness having missed training, but Lee said: “He will be with the medical staff this week and we are confident he will be back.”
It was Lee’s first game with caretaker assistant manager Jody Brown alongside him after he was brought in following his sacking by National League South bottom club, Billericay Town, this week.
Lee added: “It was good to have Jody alongside me. He’s not going to be able to do any help doing any kicking, is he? He is more experienced on matchdays than me, so it is good to have him alongside us.
“He doesn’t know the plays as well as me and (Josh Staunton) and make decisions for me, and he made some today and we’ve got the win.
“I am enjoying it and embracing the opportunity. There’s lots going on, but there’s more opportunities to learn and hopefully we can win whilst I am learning.“