STEVE WATSON has lauded the impact of the Bootham Crescent crowd following York City's hard-fought 2-0 win over AFC Telford United.

In the end, the contest was settled by goals inside the final 10 minutes from substitute Elliott Durrell and in-form striker Jordan Burrow, who gave the scoreline the rosy look York's performance deserved.

But the Minstermen were made to work hard for the three points. Telford were well set up and seemed to be in the right place at the right time during York's dominant periods in the first half, and slowed the game down in the second.

The York team again were praised for their patience by Watson, though this time it was a virtue thrust upon them by circumstance rather than by design, as it had been at Southport.

And the fans played their part too, said the boss.

"Sometimes you get the early goal and they have to come out and you can pick them off, but the longer the game went on, we had to be patient," Watson explained.

"I though the crowd were fantastic. Even in frustrating spells, there was nothing but positivity, which helps the lads to have the positivity and belief to do something.

"At this stage of the season, you either win a game in the first five minutes or the last five minutes - it's still three points."

Three games into 2020, York have claimed maximum points and move to within a point of the National League North summit going into next week's top-of-table clash at leaders King's Lynn Town, who lost 1-0 at Ebbsfleet United in the FA Trophy on Saturday.

Striker Durrell was brought on for midfielder Adriano Moke, who continues to recover from illness, and made a near-immediate impact, forcing a far-post header beyond keeper Matt Yates.

After netting the second last week, Burrow is a man playing with confidence - highlighted by his 89th-minute finish. He caught Yates in possession on the top corner of the Bucks' area and took the ball towards the byline. With Yates off his line, the striker curled audaciously round the near post and just below the bar from a very tight angle.

"We had to be patient," he added of the game as a whole. "They came to be hard to beat and to slow the game down.

"We had a little bit of a flat spell in the first half. To get the ball down and play is sometimes harder with the wind, with the way we play exploiting the channels.

"We still created enough in the first half. Second half, we created as many chances but it was a different type of game.

"We made the change (Adriano Moke for Elliott Durrell) because we need the three points and we were desperate to get three straight wins going into next week's game. I took a midfielder off to play a 3-4-3.

"(Durrell) scored a great goal and hopefully that gives him a lot of confidence. It might end up being a vital goal for us.

"Obviously our biggest problem is either not getting on the end of great balls or not being clinical enough.

"Jordan's was the finish of a confident striker. It was a great ball from Ferguson and he carries on this great run for him."