Mansfield Town midfielder Kieran Wallace says the Stags put everything on the line to secure all three points following a well-fought 1-0 win against Stevenage in an enthralling encounter at One Call Stadium.
The 28-year-old helped steer Mansfield to a clean sheet following James Gale’s goal on 11 minutes.
Assessing a significant three points against the Boro, Kieran said: “We battled hard. We put everything on the line again and emptied the tank again and we’re happy with the win.
“We’ve got to do it all over again on Tuesday night [against Leyton Orient]. There’s only three games to go and all the other teams are winning as well which puts pressure on us.
“[Today] it was a tug of war. Our backs were against the wall [in the] second-half and we really dug deep again like we did on Tuesday night against Newport.
“We’re delighted to come away with the three points.”
When asked what was the most pleasing part of the game following the fixture, Wallace said: “Obviously [we’re] satisfied with the clean sheet. Apart from Pymy (Christy Pym) making a great save in the first-half I don’t think they had many chances from what I remember.
“I don't think we let too many clear cut or obvious chances away and that’s obviously a good sign.
“I’ve got a headache again, I headed the ball a lot.
“It was a battle out there and we always knew that with the way Stevenage play, it wasn’t a surprise for us.
“We stood up to it well and I thought we played well in the end.”
Stags produced a resolute defensive display in the latter stages which also saw Riley Harbottle enter the fray, in place of Rhys Oates, to help see out the remainder of the clash.
“They put a lot of pressure on us but I don’t think they created too much.
“When they did get close I thought Pymy swept up well and did well in goal.
“I thought the two centre-halves [Alfie Kilgour and James Perch] were outstanding.
“We were comfortable, I thought.
“We’ve kept up with the pack again haven’t we. We’re closing in on the automatics. Hopefully if we get the three points again [on Tuesday against Leyton Orient] we can get into the play-offs and really kick on.
“The lads are obviously buzzing and happy that we managed to get the three points.
“We know Tuesday is going to come around the corner [very quickly] and it’ll be here before we know it.”
