Midfielder offers his thoughts following his winning goal against the Lions
Having notched his first league goal of the season in Friday night’s 1-0 victory over Millwall at The Den, Darren Pratley believes the three points acquired against the Lions were thoroughly deserved.
The midfielder’s 68th minute strike proved to be the difference on a bitterly cold evening in the capital, with the result ensuring that Neil Lennon’s side extended their unbeaten run to seven games.
Speaking following the final whistle in South Bermondsey, the 29-year-old admitted his delight at his winning effort, but also paid special tribute to the Whites’ determination to overcome what had at times threatened to be a frustrating night.
“It was a tough game – especially when Rob Hall hit the post and then the keeper, you think that it isn’t going to be your day, but we carried on going and got the goal in the end,” said Pratley.
“It’s a tough place to come and I don’t think there was much between the teams, but it’s a very good result and it takes us up the table.
“One goal is all it takes to win a game, but the main thing is that as a team we won and that we got the three points, especially away from home which we haven’t managed to do enough of this season.
“To do that on a Friday night, before most teams play on a Saturday, it puts a bit of pressure on them as well as setting us up nicely for the Blackburn game.”
He continued: “We pressed from the front throughout and I feel like it was a very good collective team performance. When you get a clean sheet, usually your defenders get a pat on the back, but I think as a unit we’ve been solid.
“There’s a real togetherness about the team – we’re working hard right now and we don’t want to let the manager down either.”
With the three points lifting the Whites up the league table, Pratley acknowledged that Wanderers cannot afford to rest on their laurels despite their impressive result against the Lions.
“We’re not getting carried away,” he said. “We’ll take it one game at a time, because we’ve been here before and we know that we shouldn’t get too far ahead of ourselves.
“I believe that you will finish where you deserve to do so, so we’ll give it a good go during the rest of the season – it’s a 46 game season, so we will see where we end up come May.”