htafc.com talked to Caretaker Manager Gerry Murphy following the impressive 1-0 win at Brighton & Hove Albion today and he told us he was proud of the character shown by the players.
"That result showed the other side of our game," he explained. "There was a lot of commitment and character; we really dug in and ground it out.
"I thought we defended very well today. They gave us a problem with the two full-backs coming forward but we sorted it out and every man stuck to his job. It was hard work today, but we stuck at it.
"It's a good clean sheet today and that just shows the progress we are making. They are starting to talk a bit at the back, which is a good sign.
"We tried to play our football, but it was hard today because the pitch is quite small and it became very congested in the middle. All I could say to the lads was that on days like this, you have to grind a result out and I thought they did that very well."
Gerry made special mention of striker Keigan Parker, who played a big part in the only goal of the game and impressed with a lively performance up front.
"Keigan is a good player and since I've come in as Caretaker Manager, he has given me 100% on the training ground and in the games he has played. I can only applaud the lad for the way he has gone about his job. He works well with Robbo up front and the only reason we made the changes was to get a fresh pair of legs on, because they worked very hard.
"Ian Craney was also superb today; I thought he was magnificent. I played him in the anchor role instead of Jon Worthington because I feel he is better on the ball passing-wise; we needed him to get the ball from the defenders, so he was the ideal choice. Jonathan is better at breaking from box-to-box."
Town's players rushed to congratulate 'keeper Matt Glennon at the final whistle, who made a magnificent double save from a Nicky Forster penalty to ensure the three points came back to West Yorkshire.
"Matty feels he has gone through a spell where he hasn't been producing what he can and so we've tried to lift his confidence. I thought he did very well last week and today he stood up to be counted - when he was called upon, he did what he had to.
"It wasn't an easy finish to the game - I think I've put ten years on today! It's one of those games - the ugly side of football. Last week we played some very good football on a big open pitch, when Leeds came out and played football, but today that wasn't the case. Full marks to Brighton, who pressurised us in every area of the pitch.
"It's a brilliant feeling. It's a long journey back, but it will feel like we'll get back in ten minutes now! We'll now prepare for Leyton Orient. We've enjoyed today, but we'll start tomorrow ready for Tuesday. We've not got any real injuries; there are one or two aching bones, but that has to be expected given how hard they worked today.
"I believe in the quality we have at this Club and I cannot see a reason why we cannot continue on this run."
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