Cameron Evans was proud of the reaction Newport County produced to end a tough week on a high with victory over Harrogate Town.
The defender opened the scoring in the 3-0 home win with his third goal of the campaign after firing a powerful header beyond the outstretched James Belshaw.
It saw the Exes return to winning ways after away defeats to Chesterfield and Accrington Stanley ahead of the Sky Bet League Two season run-in.
And Evans felt there was plenty for the home side to take from a display where they dug in together to secure the three points.
“As a team we knew we needed a reaction. We were really disappointed as a full squad after Tuesday night, “he said.
“We wanted a reaction today. Every tackle, every second ball we were on it. We knew we needed to do that and we did to be fair. We battled so hard and thankfully the result came after working so hard for it.
“I was buzzing to score in the first half. Daf [Williams] works really hard on the set pieces, he put me in a position where I was where I was meant to be when the ball came in, and luckily I took the chance.
“It settled us a little bit, it was good to go a goal up so early on and we did well after that.
“Getting into those positions from set-pieces is always something I’ve worked on myself. Obviously I’m not the tallest but I can be a threat from a set piece because I work hard to win balls in the air.
“It’s something I take pride in and it would be nice to get a couple more goals for the team before the rest of the season.”
He added: “A clean sheet was massive for us today also . Not just as a defender but as a full team.
“We’d like to get some more in the final nine games of the season.”
The Exiles face a tough trip to play-off pushers Grimsby Town next weekend at Cleethorpes, and Evans is now hoping his side can build on their home win.
“Away games have been tough for us at times. But again we need to build momentum from today and prove that we can go away and get results," he finished.
"Games like Crewe away prove that and we will be looking to replicate that type of performance."
