Speaking to BBC Radio Sheffield
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SportsTranscript
00:00Chris, how good were your team tonight?
00:02Yeah, good, really good. Good feel about it from the off, reviewed and reflected after
00:07the weekend and they've come roaring back so I'm delighted. The response, not that it
00:14was doom and gloom, incredibly doom and gloom, I think that was five games out of six that
00:18we've won, but they're an honest bunch and we're an honest coaching staff and a manager
00:24when it has to be said, it has to be said, but they've taken on board how we wanted to
00:29play. That was more us tonight, a real good feel about it. I thought round the ground
00:33was excellent as well. There was no real nervousness about our performance and no real nervousness
00:40around the stadium. We controlled possession, our out of possession work was excellent.
00:45We got the press absolutely spot on. We made it difficult for a team that dominates the
00:50majority of teams in this division and creates big chances. I can only think of one chance
00:57second half that they had and for us we had to regroup and reset after the ridiculous
01:06decision of the penalty being given. There'll be five or ten penalties a game if that was
01:15the case and that was a decision that rocked us a little bit for five minutes, but we reset
01:21in the change room at half time and we had to keep our cool and discipline and still
01:25play and we did that so I'm delighted. I bet you couldn't believe at half time that
01:29you were level, particularly with how that first half an hour had been and some of the
01:32football you played. Yeah, I bet Portsmouth couldn't believe that they were level at half
01:37time on Saturday, but that's the game, that's what we talk about. We had to put a big performance
01:41in tonight. We knew that we had to be close to, if not our best, to get a result because
01:45they're really good. They've got some good players. They're dangerous, well coached,
01:49controlled possession. It felt a dominating performance from us. It was controlled. Physically
02:03we were good. The energy of the team was excellent and we played some big performances out there.
02:08We needed it. We talked about it. Players that we wanted to keep at the start of the
02:12season, players that we brought in at the start of the season, players that we brought
02:15in in January. We're in this position now and when the big nights call, we have to turn
02:22up and we certainly turned up.
02:23Had to be patient in the second half, but as a moment in the game, that pass from Sidi
02:28Peck for Ben Brereton Diaz's goal was something special.
02:31Yeah, pocket and slide. Sidi got into a great position. It was a great run. Ben's got that
02:37ability to stretch and run, which he did and it was a fabulous finish. You can play off
02:42the left, you can play off the right, you can play down the middle. He's a fantastic
02:45signing. We freshened it up a bit. As I said, it was difficult on Saturday because I've
02:50got the conundrum of trying to get valuable minutes into players as well to get them up
02:54to speed because we're going to have to use all the squad and we're going to have to use
02:59all the squad after the efforts of tonight.
03:03In a way, it was a difficult afternoon for us, but what we did do was, like I said, get
03:09players on the same page this last couple of days as well to set us up. So, good effort
03:18by everybody involved. Great energy levels, as I said, and some big performances in there
03:22and Sidi produced a big performance because Aiden Aitney, as I know, is an outstanding
03:27young talent and I think he went toe-to-toe with him tonight.
03:30Tom Cullen, is he alright?
03:32He's rolled his ankle, yeah. He's rolled his ankle, so we'll assess him tomorrow and see
03:38what he was. I thought he was good again. His press from the front was good, he linked
03:42it up, he stretched the game. We have that ability now to bring on Tyrese, to bring on
03:49Ben. Rhian didn't get on to the pitch, but he's been outstanding recently as well, so
03:57we have all those options that the other clubs have got now, which puts us in a decent spot.