Nantwich Town head coach Gary Taylor-Fletcher said his side fully deserved their win against Ashton United.
Their battling 1-0 away win was desperately needed as the Dabbers face a tough relegation scrap down near the bottom of Northern Premier League.
“We asked them to enjoy the battle of attacking and trying to break them down,” said Taylor-Fletcher.
“We asked them to enjoy the battle of defending as a team and for 90 minutes they have done both, we fully deserved the win.”
The Dabbers welcomed back Troy Bourne and Caspar Hughes to the starting XI following suspension and injury.
Recent signings Byron Harrison and Mwiya Malumo were also both handed their full league debuts for the club.
After conceding inside one minute against Ashton in the last fixture between the sides, it was crucial The Dabbers concentrated from the get-go.
After just six minutes Darius Osei had the first chance of the game but his deflected effort was straight at Tom Booth in the Dabbers goal.
Nantwich’s first chance came just minutes later when Ashton keeper Greg Hartley rushed off his line to clear but it only went as far as Malumo but his effort from 25 yards was well wide of the open goal.
On the 20 minute mark, Moldovan midfielder Ivan Urvantev volleyed towards goal but it was excellently tipped over by Hartley.
After the break, Nantwich Town striker Dan Cockerline who has been out with a shoulder injury, grabbed his second goal in as many games on 57 minutes to give The Dabbers the lead.
A low cross was met by Cockerline, but his first effort was blocked before the rebound fell kindly for him and he tucked home into the bottom corner much to the delight of the travelling Dabbers fans.
Taylor-Fletcher was full of praise for the big striker: “We know how good Cockers can be, we’ve been desperate to get him back. To have him back on the pitch is what we want and what we need.”
The hosts had a great opportunity to level just seconds after going behind as Osei broke the offside trap and raced through on goal but once against Booth was there to save well and keep his clean sheet intact.
The Dabbers defended excellently, throwing bodies on the line and showing the fight and desire that was missing at the beginning of the season.
As the game entered the dying embers Ashton United had one more chance to draw level as Lonsdale fired a low cross across the face of goal and somehow it was diverted over the bar from a yard out.
It was the last kick of the game and The Dabbers picked up a much-needed three points which will hopefully now kickstart their season.
They are next in action on Saturday November 12 as they host third placed Gainsborough Trinity at The Swansway Stadium
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