IT was great to get back to winning ways at Cheltenham Town on Tuesday night.

And I think it showed that what I have written in my last couple of columns is true and that we need our influential players to be in the side.

We welcomed back Bilel Mohsni and Anthony Grant against Cheltenham and we thoroughly deserved the win.

We could, and probably should, have scored a few more goals and nobody could have complained if we had of done.

That was against a team chasing a place in the play-offs and it again showed what we’re capable of when we have options available to us. I think the couple of days of good training we had in the build-up to the game also helped and the only downer on the night was the ankle injuries we picked up to Bilel and Josh Simpson.

Josh’s injury has settled down a little bit, while we are still waiting for the results of Bilel’s scan, but I would think they would both be very doubtful for Saturday’s game against Wycombe, which is a real blow.

Bilel and Chris Barker again showed on Tuesday how good they can be as a partnership, so to have to break that up again would be disappointing.

We also have the cold weather coming back and that could also prove problematic for us.

We’ve put the covers over the pitch though and hopefully that will help to make sure the game will go ahead.

It’s important we build on winning at Cheltenham and pick up more points.

It was a big victory for us on Tuesday and we showed good character to bounce back from losing at Burton the previous Saturday.

I handed young Alex Woodyard his debut that day and I would again like to stress he certainly didn’t let anybody down in the midfield.

I took him off at half-time but it was just because of how the game was going and I didn’t want him with bad scars left on his mind.

I’ve watched the game again on the DVD and, although at times the pace of the game was too much for him, I think he will be a better player for having had a taste of first team football.

MANAGERS HAVE TO BE GIVEN TIME TO SUCCEED

ONCE again I find myself writing about what seems to be a strange sacking, as Sam Alladyce has now gone from Blackburn Rovers.

Last week it was Chris Hughton at Newcastle United and I find it bizarre because Sam was doing a good job there.

It also takes time for managers to get teams to how they want them to be at times and they should have stuck by him.

Even Alex Ferguson took two or three years to turn Manchester United around, but look at what he’s done with them since.

Carlos Tevez has also hit the headlines for saying he wants to leave Manchester City.

With what’s been said I don’t think there’s any going back there now.

I’ve had it before when a player comes to you and says he wants to leave and to start with you do try and talk him in to staying if he’s still part of your plans.

But with the comments he’s made, I don’t think that can happen with Tevez now and I think Manchester City need to get the best deal they can for him.

FULL COLUMN IN THURSDAY'S ECHO