Boss Paul Lambert admitted his side was below par during their 1-1 draw away against the MK Dons but felt it was one of the best performances under his management from the perspective of showing resilience to hold on for the draw after being forced to play the final 22 minutes with 10 men.
Flynn Downes suffered a knee injury shortly after coming off the bench with the Blues having used all three of their subs.
The game at that stage was 1-1, Jon Nolan having put Town ahead on seven and Daniel Harvie having levelled for the Dons five minutes after half-time.
"I thought we were a bit below,” Lambert said. "I thought we started the game really well, we scored a really good goal.
"Freddie had a great chance to make it 2-0 and then I think we lost too much of the ball and the MK Dons came on, but they never really threatened until the one at the end of the first half, which I thought was a chance.
"Second half they put us under a lot of pressure but we still looked pretty dangerous on the counter.
"We lost Wardy [Stephen Ward, achilles injury], which was a blow and we lost Flynn, which was a blow.
"What I will say is that was right up with one of the best performances for different reasons, the resolve of the team, the desire was fantastic, guys throwing their bodies on the line. I’m really happy with them.”
He says it was a game they might have lost and his players were forced to dig in: "We did, and we showed incredible resilience. And again, we’re a big club, everybody wants to beat you. We’re still undefeated, we’re still in really good form, so I’m really pleased.”
Ward left the ground with a medical boot on his foot and Lambert says he's not sure the extent of his problem, or Downes's.
"I don’t know with Wardy, hopefully that’s just a precautionary thing," he said.
"It was my choice to take him off. I’m not sure he wanted to come off but I think an achilles is a dangerous injury if that goes.
"Flynn, we don’t know, that looks a little bit more serious but hopefully it’ll settle down and is OK. We’ll have to wait and see.”
Dons goalscorer Harvie might well have been red-carded in the first half when he kicked Blues skipper Luke Chambers off the ball.
"If it’s an off the ball incident and I think it was real good chance that that was what it was,” Lambert said when asked about the incident, which took place right in front of the dugouts and was spotted by the fourth official.
"I don’t know, I’d have to see it again but I’ve seen things in the Premier League, seen things in the Championship where people have been sent off. You can’t do things off the ball, that’s my argument on it.”
Reflecting on the point, he says it could prove to be a useful one in the context of the season with the Blues now sitting third behind new leaders Lincoln and Hull City, both still with 100 per cent records.
"It’s a great start, we’re playing really well, that was a really good performance for different reasons with 10 men for half an hour,” he added.
"And we still had counter-attack chances, I think Gwion [Edwards] should have pulled the trigger when he was going through, he did great, and I think he should have shot rather than tried to play Judgey in. Really happy with a lot of the stuff.”
Looking ahead to Tuesday’s game against Gillingham in the EFL Trophy, he says he will play a very young side, even if that means being fined for breaking the competition’s selection rules.
"It will be,” he said when asked if it would be a young team facing the Gills. "If it’s good enough for Jurgen Klopp to put out a young team when he’s got Premier League games and Champions League games, albeit it’s not the same level of competition, it’s certainly good enough for us.
"We’ll take the hit, whatever comes our way, but I have to look after the first team.”
He says he’ll not include players such as Kayden Jackson who are returning from injury.
"We play too many games, we have to play 50-odd games in a 35-week season,” he continued.
"I won’t do it because I put them at risk. It’s a crazy decision to have this tournament, a crazy decision. We run the risk of more injuries, allied to [James] Norwood’s one as well. I’ll make that choice.”
Regarding new loan signing Keanan Bennetts, he said: "He’ll be dynamic, we need to get him fit to see where he is. Hopefully he’ll be dynamic down that side. Give the kid a chance when he gets in and find his feet and see how he does.”
Lambert says Tuesday’s game will come too soon for the on-loan Borussia Mönchengladbach man.
"I think he needs a week or so with everybody here to find his feet,” he said. "The most important thing is the first team.”
Regarding further business, Lambert is not anticipating any further signings, although players could still move out.
"I really don’t know. One or two guys maybe will go, I don’t know but I don’t think we’ll get anybody else in,” he added.
Youngsters going out to gain experience? "Yes, we have to go out and see what happens between now and [the deadline].”
The international window closes on Monday and domestically shuts on Friday 16th October.