Simon Bassey saluted his side's second-half performance after a much-needed victory against Southend and he praised the supporters for sticking with their team.
Following Wimbledon's first league victory since September 29, Simon summed up his pride after leading the Dons to victory as Interim Manager in his second game in charge. In his half-time team-talk, Simon told the players to express themselves and he was delighted with their response.
"I thought we were nervous at times in the first-half," said Simon. "We could have passed it better in the first-half and we could have had more options on the ball. I told them just to enjoy themselves. I wanted them to run around, to be committed. I asked them if they wanted to enjoy football and they said 'yes'. I asked them for 45 minutes to show me that they wanted to enjoy their football and to a man I thought they were excellent.
"The supporters have been fantastic, they've been through tough times, but they've stuck with us. If you give the supporters something to cheer about they will get behind the team. I think the team gave them that today and they certainly got behind them.
"I think the effort put in by the lads was fantastic. We started okay, we had a couple of good situations, and then we conceded a sloppy goal from our point of view. It would have been easy for the lads to feel sorry for themselves. Although we were not fluent in the first-half, we were competitive. We created a few good situations, then obviously the goal just before half-time was fantastic for us."
Simon added that it meant a lot to him to guide the Dons to a home victory as both of his wins as Interim Manager six years ago came away from home.
"It's a part of my development again. I did this job six years ago for four games. I was a different person then to what I am now, so it's nice to see a change in myself and the questions that you get asked. I will try to continue to make myself a better coach and a better person."
"Last time I had four games with three away and I lost the home game, so at least after today I can say that I've won a home game as Interim Manager. It's a really proud day for me. My association with the club is from the age of 10 until now and I'm 42. It's a long time, so it's a really proud moment for me and my family."
The full interview with Simon Bassey is now on our iFollow channel.
Pic credit: Matt Redman, Pro Sports Images.