Head coach Michael Skubala hailed an “unbelievable” group of players whose sheer determination to win forced all three points at Stockport County.
Rob Street’s late penalty conversion sealed a 2-1 win at Edgeley Park, in what was City’s first Boxing Day win on the road for almost a decade.
Skubala said: “It was a real ding-dong of a match against a really good team - this is a huge moment against a good well-coached team, they’’ll be right up there.
“It’s an unbelievable group that came through that, the players deserved it. All our front players are willing to put unbelievable work to press, we’re aggressive and front-footed and kept trying to push the game.”
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Skubala was pleased with the way his side dug in after conceding the equaliser and, after regrouping, went on to force the game.
He said: “We can’t be perfect and have 90 minutes of the game how we want it, but we’ve shown real resilience when the opposition are having that spell.
“The group is still learning, and once we’ve grown back into the game we can get back on top of it. I’m really pleased we got what we deserved from the game.
“The lads gave their heart and soul for the cause out there.”
Skubala also had praise for the 631 Imps fans who backed their side all the way to the end, and were rewarded with memorable scenes as Street concerted the late penalty kick in front of them to spark wild celebrations.
He added: “We managed the occasion and the crowd well. The fans were great, you can feel the connection - they were right behind us and we’ll need them for the rest of the season.”
