Terry Hawkridge was the Iron’s man of the match on Saturday with an impressive display in the 2-2 draw against Bury.
He was pleased with his performance but was understandably disappointed with the late equaliser from the visitors.“I thought we did well,” he told The Iron Player.
“The boys grafted for 90 minutes and that’s what is asked of them.
"We took the lead twice yet they clawed it back both times, but overall both teams worked hard and you could say it was a fair result.”
Russ Wilcox described the winger’s game as the “best he’s had at the club”, something Hawkridge was pleased with.
He said: “I thought I did well and put in a shift but as did the rest of the lads. You could say it was one of my best games but I’m still learning a lot. I’ve just got to keep pushing myself as there are still four games left."
The former Gainsborough Trinity man was a key player in Scunthorpe’s second goal, winning the penalty that provided the rebound for substitute Hayes.
A slick one-two with Nolan found Hawkridge behind the Bury defence, who was then bundled down inside the area.
Despite the disappointment of the late equaliser, the 24-year-old insists it was “important to avoid defeat as you never know about the results around you.”
After the final whistle the said results ended up favourable to Scunthorpe, who now find themselves top of the table, a point ahead of Rochdale, who started the afternoon in first place.
After a dull first half, Paddy Madden soon broke the deficit, converting an Adelakun cross past Brian Jensen.
According to Hawkridge, Russ Wilcox said very little at the interval and just kept his team talk simple.
He stated: “He just told us to play football and attack down the flanks, which we did and we got the reward with our early goal. This settled us a bit but it all boils down to hard work; we’ve worked our socks off for the last 26 games and that’s why we remain unbeaten."
Bury had kept 10 clean sheets in their last 19 games before facing the Iron in what is a late push for the playoffs. Scoring two goals against them came as no surprise for the man of the match, who says Scunthorpe’s “attacking has been great all season.”
“They don’t concede many, we knew that before the game, but to get two against them is great," he said.
"They’ve been absolutely flying lately and they’re a good side so I think a draw was a good result in the end."
With Scunthorpe now top of League Two with four games to go, Hawkridge not only claims the title is the aim, but that it always has been.
“At the beginning of the season that’s what you want as a player," he said.
"To keep things going we just need to concentrate on Morecambe and when that’s out of the way we press on for the next three."
This is the mentality Wilcox has installed in the Scunthorpe ranks: to take each game as it comes.
Clearly it is having an effect, with United 26 games unbeaten, thus beating the world record for a new manager.
This honour previously belonged to Andre Villas Boas before Saturday’s result at Glanford Park.
“The record is a worthy result for everyone at Scunthorpe United,” said Hawkridge.
“We’ve been working hard to avoid defeat and it’s great for the club. I don’t see why the run can’t last until the end of the season; we’ve got four tough games but we also have a great squad capable of beating anyone. "
Scunthorpe face Morecambe next, a fixture that requires a “tough week in training, whilst continuing the work rate shown all season,” said Hawkridge.
“We want to be champions so we just have to keep playing how we are. We’ll be ready when it comes," he added.