YORK City boss Russ Wilcox hailed Jake Hyde’s 94th-minute equaliser at Plymouth as his reward for staying positive after being switched to the right wing.

Striker Hyde was moved to the flank as Wilcox threw on teenage loan pair Diego De Girolamo and Carlton Morris in an attempt to cancel out Bobby Reid’s deflected third-minute opener for the in-form hosts.

It paid off when Hyde was on hand to finish from close range after his first shot had been saved by home keeper Luke McCormick following De Girolamo’s low cross from the left.

The goal denied high-flying Argyle an eighth consecutive home win and also nudged Hyde one clear of fellow striker Wes Fletcher and defender Keith Lowe in the Minstermen’s scoring charts.

Commenting on Hyde’s goal and his attitude to playing out of position, City chief Wilcox said: “It wasn’t a great free kick in by Michael Coulson for the goal.

“It got deflected into the air and Diego did well to retrieve it, but then Jake did what he does best. He showed great movement to get across the first man at the near post.

“The keeper then did really well to save the first shot but Jake was sharp enough to follow it up and put it in the net. When your 1-0 down, you want to keep as many offensive players on the pitch as possible and I wanted to have a front three or four up there, so I asked Jake to do that role down the right-hand side.

“If you asked some strikers to do that, they would sulk but he got on with it and showed a great attitude towards the role. He obviously wants to play centrally but, when that chance comes along, you want goalscorers on the pitch and he stuck it in the net nicely.

“He’s got five goals now and will be pleased with that because, as a striker, you don’t want a centre-half being top scorer.”

With De Girolamo and Morris introduced from the bench, Wilcox added that the competition for places in attack is strong and reasoned: “Everybody knows we have different options off the bench now and that means you have to bust a gut to keep the shirt.

“Wes is still getting up to speed, but I thought he also did very well, turning and running at their defenders.”

With the Minstermen having suffered stoppage-time agony on so many occasions this season, Wilcox was also exuberant after seeing his side grab a late point.

He admitted: “It felt like a win because it’s happened the other way round to us so many times this season and I am delighted for the whole group because we dug in against a quality team. I’m also so pleased for the travelling fans because they supported us right through the 94 minutes and, like at Hartlepool last week, it was great to get the goal at their end.

“I thought we deserved the draw. We were very brave after going 1-0 down in the third minute at a club who had won seven home games on the spin and won the last ten games they have scored first in, so it was a terrific point for the club.

“We had two great chances to equalise in the first half with the one that hit Keith (Lowe) on the shoulder and Josh (Carson) had a magnificent opportunity with his strong foot, but didn’t manage to keep it down. That was disappointing because you know you won’t get a dozen chances at a really good side with a really good manager.

“They’ve got what I would consider the best strikeforce in the division in Reuben Reid and Lewis Alessandra as well and that’s no disrespect to our forwards but we handled them quite well and, while we didn’t create as many openings in the second half, to get the goal and then hear the whistle go straight afterwards was very pleasing.”

The City boss paid tribute, meanwhile, to an unwell Lowe’s spirit after he completed 73 minutes in Devon before making way for John McCombe.

“Keith was ill and I was going to bring him off at half-time when he said he was really struggling,” Wilcox revealed. “He’s been under the weather for a few days and not had his full intake of food since Tuesday but, in the dressing room, he said he wanted to keep going, which tells you a lot about his character and, when he ran out of gas, I had a great replacement to bring on in John.”

Under Wilcox, the Minstermen have now enjoyed league victories at Cheltenham and Hartlepool, while holding Plymouth and Morecambe on their own soil – the latter after conceding an injury-time leveller.

Expressing his pleasure at his team’s results on their travels, the Bootham Crescent boss enthused: “Our away form has been terrific. We’ve taken eight points from the last four games and, if you are picking up an average of two points a game on the road, you’ve got to be delighted.”