Iron defender Andrew Boyce was delighted to be back in the side for the Sheffield United game on Saturday, a match that ended 1-1 at Glanford Park.
The centre back had not started a game since the defeat to Barnsley in February, but returned to the starting line up to ensure Scunthorpe earned a well-deserved point against the Blades.“I was delighted to play on Saturday,” he said.
“I want to play in every game – as do the rest of the team – so hopefully I can keep the shirt.”
United went ahead thanks to a headed effort from Neal Bishop, which was then cancelled out by Kieron Freeman’s strike before half time.
Boyce admitted the Iron may have let the visitors have too much of the ball in the first half, but was pleased with the performance in the second period.
He said: “We were a bit laboured and gave them a bit too much respect in the first half, but we did well to get a goal from the set play.
“After half time, we got in their faces more and pressed them well. We were the better team after that and were unlucky not to win the game.”
Scunthorpe had a couple of opportunities to grab the three points in the second 45 minutes, with Madden almost finding the net with a close-range effort. Boyce praised the creativity on display after half time, but could not hide his disappointment at conceding.
“The positives were that we created enough chances to win it,” said the 25-year-old. "But we’ve got to do more to keep a clean sheet.”
Scunthorpe had to be resolute at times, with the back four throwing themselves at anything that came into the penalty area.
“I thought we were solid and unlucky to concede on Saturday. However, we switched off at the back and he stuck it in the bottom corner,” said the former Lincoln City defender.
Boyce has featured in a variety of defensive partnerships in the centre of the back four this season, playing with the likes of Miguel Llera and Alex Davey. He was joined by Niall Canavan on Saturday, a player he enjoys playing alongside.
“Niall has played a lot of games and is a good player. We defended a lot in the first half but we remained solid for most of it,” he said.
Boyce revealed the game plan to deal with the threat of Sheffield United was to “get in their faces and press them”, something they did a lot better in the second half, he says.
He continued by saying the performance was a good response from the team following the defeat against Crewe last week.
The Iron have got results against some of the top teams in the division this year, beating Swindon and drawing against MK Dons. Boyce was pleased to once again take points from a top-six side, but admitted the Iron could’ve snatched a victory.
He stated: “We’ve turned some of the best teams in the league this season, and we should’ve had three points on Saturday. It was important to keep a clean sheet in the second half and we ended up unfortunate not to win the game.”
See much more from Andrew Boyce, Mark Robins and Paddy Madden on The Iron Player.