New Town manager Joe Royle said it wasn't difficult to get motivated for the match with Slovan Liberec and, although not at their best, he was pleased with his side's performance.

Royle said: "It wasn't difficult to prepare for the match. There were so many pleasing things about the performance.

"We had a bit of luck though, but we had a level of performance that even on a bad day would have given us the chance of a result."

He admitted that the 40-year, 30-match unbeaten home European record did concern him: "The record was in my mind, especially in the first half when they hit the bar.

"I said then that it might just be our day, and there were a lot of pluses.

"I know we can play better, but the players did fine - the performance was more important than the result."

"Being back in the dugout was strange, having been out of it so long, I had forgotten that dugout madness.

"You soon find yourself gripped in it, and the goal helped my humour."

"It was a great reception. There were a few dissenters again for whatever reasons. They have their opinions, but I hope good results will help change that."

Liberec coach Ladislav Å korpil thought his side could have performed to a higher standard: "The players can play better than they did tonight. We had the chances to win the game but the players tried their best."

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