I thought it was a solid defensive performance and we deserved to win the game.
When I saw the starting line up I thought it was a 'back to basics' approach from Mellon and so it proved, with Spearing and O'Connor sitting in front of the back four and NKP recalled. O'Connor had a good game and protected the defence well, particularly in the full back areas, and KP was solid and won the majority of his aerial duels. We were not exactly scintillating on the ball, particularly in the first half when there was still an obvious lack of confidence, but our defensive shape was much better than last week and we looked comfortable at the back. As soon as we scored the opening goal I felt confident we would win the game: Crawley had a lot of possession and huffed and puffed in the second half, but we restricted them to half chances.
For all the talk of clueless tactics and selection, Mellon's approach was spot on in the circumstances and we ground out the result.
Individually, I thought Watson looked more comfortable playing as a genuine number ten behind Nevitt. He has not got the game intelligence to run box to box like Foley, but looked better in his preferred position. There was a lack of understanding between MacDonald and Feeney at times, particularly in the first half, but the back four was generally solid. Doohan had very little to do, but produced a superb save from a set piece in the second half and justified his selection.
Man of the match, Callum MacMananan: he produced a moment of quality for the goal and played well both going forward and defensively. He offers more than many people suggest.