London Colney boss Jack Metcalfe says the squad assembled this year is more than meeting the pre-season targets after a fifth win of the campaign.

It came courtesy of a Wilberforce Ocran goal nine minutes into the second half of a home game with MK Irish, the 1-0 success lifting them up to ninth in the Spartan South Midlands League Premier Division.

It wasn't pretty and in the latter stages they had to face pressure from the visitors who have now slipped one place below the Blueboys.

And after the woes of the previous few years, where they were rock bottom, the manager is delighted with the battling qualities displayed.

Metcalfe said: "We’ve got our own targets in house but for us it was about being competitive this year and we are more than doing that.

"We’ve shown that we can play but we can also dig it out as well.

"That was a real question mark for this club over the last few years. Could we stand up and be counted when the going got tough?

"And I tell you what, these boys have got that bit of heart and desire to get over the line.

"The boys defended excellently and the goalkeeper was superb on his debut.

"It’s been a tough week and they worked their socks off.

"It was back and forth, it was physical and it was balls in to the box and I thought Bobby Armstrong and Zac Holding were brilliant for us.

"The amount of times Irish put a ball into the box and those two won nearly every header.

"I’m just delighted with the win."

It is the former goalkeeper's first managerial role and while it has been an eye opener at times, he says the ups more than make up for any downs.

He said: "Everyone knows, or at least I hope they do, that I love this club. I’ve been here for a long while now and we are trying so hard.

"It’s a full-time job on not even a part time money and it takes up my whole focus.

"But it is an incredible feeling when you win. I loved it as a player but the feeling you get after a win like this when you’ve had a tough few days and it’s back to the walls and you’ve had to patch a team together, there is no better feeling.

"Jason [Coughlan] and I have worked so hard to build a squad this year and it is not just the 11 on the pitch.

"It is the 20-25 boys who are all in it together and are all pushing each other every week.

"The injury list we have at the minute is scary but that’s why you build a squad.

"The boys deserve every credit."