Town boss Paul Jewell was pleased with his side’s resilience if not their overall performance during Tuesday's 1-0 victory over Portsmouth. Keith Andrews's second half goal saw the Blues to a fortunate win and up into the play-off places.
Jewell said: "We were throwing ourselves at shots and they’ve had numerous corners. We’ve done all right against them because they’re a big strong team and we’re not the biggest team in the world.
"Credit to our lads where credit is due regarding resilience, it wasn’t the greatest performance by any stretch of the imagination, but I was really pleased with the result.”
The Blues boss says he withdrew Jason Scotland at half-time as he thought he wasn’t quite his usual self: "I just thought he looked a little bit flat.
"He’s been carrying a tight hamstring but he just looked a little bit flat tonight. There was no other reason than that.”
Scotland is one of a number of players in Jewell’s now familiar starting line-up over 30 but the Town manager doesn’t think this is a huge issue, although he says he will keep an eye on the situation with games coming thick and fast: "When I look back on the team we had at Bradford that won promotion with Dean Saunders, Peter Beagrie, Dean Windass, Stuart McCall, John Dreyer and Gary Walsh they just wanted to play matches.
"When I used to say to them to have a couple of days off they wouldn’t because they thought it was a sign of weakness.
"I think players feel tired and they get injured when they’re losing games. But I’ll have to monitor that situation closely because we have got a few 30-somethings.
"If I think people are looking a bit tired or a bit jaded, whether they’re a 30-something or a 20-something, then I might rest them.”
Asked about Nathan Ellington’s knock-down for Keith Andrews’s winning goal, Jewell felt there was an element of good fortune: "I think he was heading it for the net, he’s got a head like a sheriff’s badge!
Pompey caretaker-manager Guy Whittingham thought former Blues skipper David Norris did well on his return to Portman Road: "It’s always hard as a player when you go back to an old club, I’ve done it a couple of times myself. I think he coped with that side of the game well.
"People here know what sort of player he is and he’s doing exactly the same for us, which is great for us now.”