Nigel Clough is hoping Mansfield’s work ethic can keep them punching above their weight in League One after a 1-1 draw against leaders Birmingham.
The Stags continue to surprise after promotion and remain in the play-off picture after this point.
“Hopefully this desire and endeavour will keep us in the league,” said Clough.
“After the Stevenage defeat we looked at the next three games and thought we could be staring down the barrel of four defeats. So to get four points from the first two games tells us a lot about the character of the squad.
“We can take great heart and confidence that if we keep working like that, we can give most teams a game; maybe not technically, but in other ways.
“We know we will be outplayed at times as sides have better players. But if we hang on in there, hopefully we can make it difficult and maybe score at the other end.
“Technically Birmingham are exceptionally good and some of their play was above this standard. So we had to show other qualities in order to get something.
“The equaliser lifted the team and the whole stadium, the momentum shifted and we were in the ascendancy for a period, though you always have to be careful with the quality they possess and pace they have all over the pitch.
“We had a scare just after we equalised. But from that point the three chances we had, one of those could have won us the game.”
Birmingham dominated the first half and were ahead on 10 minutes after Willum Willumsson fired home from Keshi Anderson’s low, pulled-back cross from the left.
But Lee Gregory fired a 63rd-minute free-kick through the Blues’ wall to level from 20 yards.
And, after Anderson and Lydon Dykes failed to net in a scramble in which Aden Flint hit his own post soon after, it was the home side who almost won it with Stephen McLaughlin and Will Evans unable to finish.
Blues boss Chris Davies said: “It is a good point in the bigger picture, but it feels like a defeat when you draw a game in the form we have been in.
“We have come away to a team that are right up there themselves and been the better team over the game and we’re disappointed not to win.
“It is so important to get that second goal and kill the game off and today we didn’t do that.
“The equaliser was a poor one from our point of view as the ball went through our wall. It is something we have to learn from and improve.
“Then Mansfield’s tails were up, although we did have a couple of chances we would normally score to win it.
“There wasn’t much in it second half – it was quite tight and not enough to take the game away from Mansfield.
“I thought we were very comfortable at half-time. We had dominated the first half and scored a good goal.”
