Iron manager Mark Robins praised both the individual and collective efforts of his players as they secured a 1-1 draw against promotion chasing MK Dons.
The United boss was particularly pleased with how his side stifled the threat of the visitor’s highly rated midfielder Dele Alli, who has caught the eye of several top flight clubs.The youngster has been in great form this season and is the Dons’ top scorer, but found the United midfield hard to break down, which pleased the Iron boss.
Robins told The Iron Player: “They've got a midfielder in there that they think is worth £9m and we've kept him quiet for the most part.
“He's an undoubted talent, but our midfield has kept him quiet and done well.
“I thought Gary McSheffrey was outstanding when he came on and Paddy Madden worked his socks off as usual and the midfield three did great in terms of the work ethic and the pressing and closing down.
“Bish has been outstanding and I though Niall and Boycie did well apart from the goal.”
The goal was the only real sour note for Robins, but he felt that it was a result that the Iron could build on and use to continue to push up the table.
He said: “That was disappointing, but these are a good side and you totally expect them to give you a tough time.
“We needed the game, it's not ideal having the program we've had of late because we've missed games and not got into that rhythm, but this is the first chance we can get into a rhythm.”
The Iron will take heart from holding one of the division’s most prolific outfits, although Robins felt that if any team deserved to win, then it was the Iron.
He said: “I was saying before the game if you give it away they're going to run at you and they break quickly. They've got some good quality, but I don't think they showed it particularly in the first half.
“I thought when they got into good areas they wasted their opportunities or we've made an excellent save. I thought Luke (Daniels) was good and did everything well.
“I thought we were, certainly in the second half, by far and away the better team in terms of chances created and opportunities that we got in front of their goal.
“One-one is disappointing, but at the same time it is a point on the board and that's one of our games in hand gone, but we've got something from it and have to maintain it.”
See much more from Mark Robins, Niall Canavan and Tom Hopper on The Iron Player.