Michael Skubala was “pleased” despite his Lincoln City side stretching their winless league run to six games.
The Imps head coach praised a clean sheet and a “fair” point, as Lincoln played out a goalless draw against mid-table Charlton Athletic.
Storm Darragh Playing Havoc:
At the end of the 12:30pm kick-off, Skubala said: “The rain you can deal with, but the wind is just so hard because the ball is just swirling all over the place. So, I think that affected the game a lot.
“The challenge we set ourselves as a group was to keep a clean sheet and get back to clean sheets… and I think the back three today were fantastic.
“It felt more like ourselves, where nothing was cheap and if anyone was going to win the game it was us pushing it at the end.”
He described the conditions as horrible, after the teams had just one shot on target a piece in a lacklustre afternoon.
“Solid” Defensive Display and Ben House Illness:
Lincoln City recorded a first clean sheet in five games, when the Imps earned a point at Exeter City.
“We had to be solid. We knew they were a really direct team, we knew they would put it on us a lot. And, as the game wore on, we looked solid and getting on top of it,” Skubala said.
He added: “A point is probably fair, but if anyone was going to win it, it thought it was us. But, the most pleasing thing, we’ve got to get back to our clean sheets.
“We’re pleased. The challenge for us is getting back to being hard to beat and then the other stuff will come, so it’s a pleasing point.”
Skubala also noted that Ben House missed out due to illness, after originally being slated as starting the SkyBet League One fixture. The Imps boss said his replacement Freddie Draper was “magnificent” in the first-half.
“Everyone to a man today was fantastic, we just didn’t quite get the big moments we usually get. And, even at the end, it didn’t quite drop for us at the back post, or sometimes the final pass just didn’t drop,” the former Leeds United under-21s chief said.
A Game Lacking Quality:
When quizzed on if the game lacked quality, Skubala was quick to place the blame on the wind and rain.
He said: “The conditions lacked quality, the conditions make it hard. I don’t think you can say the game lacked quality for players, because that’s really harsh. I think the game lacked quality because of the conditions.
“So, what you find is the ball is in the air, and you don’t know where it is going. So, it’s a real test of mentality as well as technique.
“I think if it wasn’t so windy, you’d get a better game today. But, there’s no doubt that those conditions today were really tough.”
Lincoln City travel to Morecambe in the EFL Trophy on Tuesday night, before a trip to Huddersfield Town in League One.