Saturday 16 February 2013 19:37, UK
John Ward heaped praise on his Bristol Rovers team after watching them pick up a 1-0 win over Wycombe at the Memorial Stadium.
This victory made it 20 points from nine games under Ward - more than Rovers had achieved in 22 League Two fixtures this season prior to his arrival. Former Stoke City striker Ryan Brunt scored the only goal of the match with a tame looking volley from Joe Anyinsah's cross, which caught Wycombe goalkeeper Jordan Archer unsighted. And, while the visitors pushed the home side into some desperate defending at times, that only increased Ward's pride in a win clinched by Brunt's 35th-minute goal. He said: "My players were throwing bodies in the way of the ball in injury time and I enjoyed seeing that because it showed the spirit we have in the side. "We had to dig in and protect our lead, which made it more like an away victory, but that made me all the more delighted with my players. "I have a settled back-four playing in front of Steve Mildenhall and they protected him magnificently today. But as a team we defended well. "Ryan Brunt is a 19-year-old who plays as though he is 29. He has now scored twice for me and won a couple of penalties in five appearances, so I'm delighted with him."
