David Flitcroft feels Bury are well worth a place in the Sky Bet League 2 Play-Offs after winning 1-0 at home to Hartlepool United.
Plucky Pools, bottom of the table, looked set to claim a valuable point until their resistance was broken by Andrew Tutte in the 75th minute.That made it successive victories for the Shakers and sent them back into seventh place.
"We had to grind it out," said Bury boss Flitcroft. "We knew it was going to be difficult, but it was win at all costs.
"Hartlepool have had some positive results of late, like a lot of the teams fighting down there.
"At times our quality let us down, which played into their hands, but Nick Pope hardly had a save to make.
"We weren't going to get beat but at times I thought 'is that goal going to come?'
"We kept knocking at the door and eventually Tuttey drove into the box and finished it off.
"It was a scruffy goal but I'm sick of managers coming to me after the game saying what a good team we've got, that we played some great stuff, but we've not got the three points.
"The three points mean everything to me tonight and the lads deserve to be in that top seven. It's a fantastic result and one we fully deserved."