Alex Morris was pleased with three points from another hard-working display against Crawley Town on Saturday.
The manager far from enthralled with the overall performance, but he was keen to take the positives as his men took maximum return thanks to a Courtney Baker-Richardson strike.
And Morris made it clear that he understands that this Crewe Alexandra side remains a work in progress.
He said: “It was a slightly better performance than we managed at Hartlepool in midweek.
“I was stood in the technical area at Hartlepool at 9.30pm on Tuesday, and we were 1-0 down. I was thinking ‘this is grim’, but four days on, we are four points better off.
“It’s good to pick up points when you’re not playing well. We’re a work in progress. I know many people want to see us producing silky, attacking football – me too – but we’re not going to be able to play the type of football our promotion-winning team did a couple of years ago.
“Those players had had three-or-four years of playing at this level, finishing low down in this league, getting using to playing and combining with each other, and many of them had been playing together in the academy for many years before that too. That team was probably 15 years in the making.
“This is a new group, and we are four months into it. But we have a sound structure in terms of the defensive side. That’s four clean sheets and nine goals conceded in nine games, which is not bad going.
“There’s work to do, we all know that, and I was disappointed at aspects. But it is another win on the board. This is a great bunch of lads; their application is excellent and that alone has earned us points this season.”
Morris reserved some praise for his match-winner, and the man who created the opportunity in the 73rd minute – Eli King.
He added: “It was a terrific finish. Kingy did really well to get the ball to him and Courtney has been clinical when those chances have been presented to him, especially at home. Five goals at home is a really good return.”