WYCOMBE WANDERERS manager Gareth Ainsworth said he was “elated” to see Aaron Pierre’s stoppage time winner at Cambridge hit the back of the net as the Chairboys grabbed their first away win in the league since February.

Pierre’s moment of magic came just four minutes after George Maris had equalised Paul Hayes’ early penalty.

However, the real hero for the away side was goalkeeper Jamal Blackman who pulled off a series of magnificent saves in the second half

Ainsworth was understandably emotional at what he had just witnessed, but was extremely honest in his assessment of the game. He said: “It has been a long wait for this away league win, but to be honest we may have not deserved that today as Cambridge really put the pressure on us in the second half.

“Jamal Blackman will play in the Premier League because of what he has done today. Everyone wants to disagree with me but his performance today in the second half was outstanding.

“The resilience was something special and we have deserved to win away from home before now but today’s game probably had a draw on it.

“I am just elated but I don’t want to get too high. We are on a good run at the moment but we have Newport on Tuesday night and I want to keep our feet firmly on the ground for that.”

The win at the Abbey Stadium saw Wycombe jump to 10th in League Two and Ainsworth quipped: “It’s nice to see and maybe I will buy a newspaper now to have a read as I haven’t done that for a while!”

Skipper Hayes echoed Ainsworth’s post-match sentiments about the victory. His fifth minute penalty was the first his side had been awarded in eight months but he showed an ice cool nerve to stroke the ball home.

He said: “It was fantastic to score the penalty. It looks like we are getting that rub of the green at the moment and it was a great feeling to score so early.”

Hayes also reserved praise for Blackman, adding: “He was immense today. He pulled off those saves, he came and claimed everything. The gaffer came into the dressing room after and said ‘Well done Jamal’ and that sums it up because he kept us in it today.”

Resilience was a word that Ainsworth used to sum up his side’s performance and Hayes commented: “The belief to keep going right at the end was the reason we won today. We showed our endeavour and togetherness and we were brave to throw our men up to get the win rather than settle for the point.”

Wycombe now face a trip to south Wales on Tuesday evening and Hayes identified Jon Parkin as a potential threat for the Chairboys to deal with:

“He is a dangerman, when he is on it, he is on it,” explained Hayes. “He can be a real threat at this level and we need to make sure we stop getting balls in to him.”

Tuesday’s game is at 7.45pm and Ainsworth will be hoping the win at Cambridge can breathe new life into their away form.