Chris Wilder believes the determination of his Oxford United squad to beat Dagenham & Redbridge on Tuesday bodes extremely well for the final third of the season.

The U’s recorded a battling 2-1 victory, despite a below-par display.

And Wilder says that seeing the other side of his team was pleasing.

“We would take three points that way, especially after the way we have played at times this season and haven’t won matches,” United’s manager said.

“I won’t beat around the bush because you want your team to play well, but our team showed resilience and character.

“Yet again we have had a team come here and set-up in the way they did and we weren’t good enough in the first half to break them down, the quality wasn’t showing.

“Whether it was people having an off-night with the ball, or because we hadn’t played for two weeks and it is difficult to replicate that match situation I don’t know.

“We got the goal to go ahead, but then I was really disappointed with the one we let in. But we came back and I was delighted that Beano got the goal, and Mehdi (Kerrouche) and Oli (Johnson) played their part in the build-up.”

With the new faces having a week’s training under their belt before tomorrow’s game at Bristol Rovers, Wilder is hoping it will be a different display at the Memorial Stadium “The pleasing thing is that we won the game have not played for a while and we have had new players coming in to the club and we’ve not been able to get any pattern or shape into them really.

“It was a pretty off-the-cuff performance and we will get better.

“Towards the end of the season we might have a couple more games like that – maybe Barnet and Macclesfield will be similar “But we have got teams in and around us that have got to come and play at our place and they are going to need wins so in a funny sort of way that might make life easier for us.”

United beat Rovers 3-0 at the Kassam Stadium, but since then Paul Buckle has been sacked as manager and Mark McGhee is now in charge.

“I have spoken before about the strength of the league,” Wilder said.

“We are trying to pull in some big clubs ahead of us. What a couple of them are doing is years ahead of what this league has seen (in terms of spending money). Possibly not since the Milton Keynes and Peterborough era have we seen anything like it at this level.

“But while there are some big clubs ahead of us, there are some below us as well and Bristol Rovers are one of them.

“I have watched their last two home games and they have done well to get the results, and they have shown a desire to go and get wins for a new manager.

“It’s always a bit galling for the former manager when the same set of players do that, but that’s what happens.

“It’s a tough game for us, we know that, but it is one where possibly we won’t encounter a team happy to sit back like on Tuesday.

“They will want to entertain their fans and try to get a result.”