“It makes for a nice night and finishes off the weekend” – Forest Green Rovers boss Steve Cotterill after win over York City to go top

Forest Green Rovers boss Steve Cotterill has stressed the importance of his side staying grounded after returning to the National League summit with a 2-0 win over York City in Saturday's televised clash at the New Lawn.

Goals from Harvey Bunker and Kyle McAllister in the second half gave Rovers the three points against the Minstermen, who were top before kick-off.

“We are grounded anyway, I have never known any league that hands out medals in November,” Cotterill said on the importance of staying level-headed.

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“It makes for a nice night and finishes off the weekend. When you come into these later games you are always under a little bit more pressure because the other teams today ended up getting results below us.

“There are lots of factors that go into the lads’ minds. It doesn’t matter whether we are top or whether we are second. I think the last time we were top, by the time we got on the bus, we ended up being second.

"As I have said before, it has just been another game, you don’t get any more points for beating York City because they were top, it is the same three points as you get for everyone.”

York had the better of the chances in the first-half, the best coming through Dipo Akinyemi who forced Jed Ward into a low save to his left.

“I thought in the second-half we were the better team in the second-half,” Cotterill said. “I thought in the first-half we were just slightly passive and I have to be honest, I was slightly disappointed with our first-half performance. We didn’t do the things that we had been doing in most of the games recently.

“With that, there has to be the caveat that we were playing against York City who were top-of-the-table and they are a good team and maybe that threw us for a bit. I thought in the second-half we were strong and powerful and maybe could have scored another goal or two. If somebody gave me that scoreline that it ended up being at the end of the game, I would have taken that.”

Rovers hit the post just two minutes into the second-half when Tom Knowles squared a ball into Joe Quigley, his effort looked destined for goal, but struck the woodwork.

Bunker opened the scoring in the 64th minute when McAllister laid a ball to him on the edge of the box for a sweet right-footed effort past Harrison Male in the York goal.

Rovers doubled their lead in the 83rd minute when McAllister’s effort struck the inside of the left post and nestled in the net to secure the win.

On the goals scored and the opportunities created, Cotterill said: “They were great finishes and we maybe could have had another one or two. We got ourselves into some great opportunities, some great passes.”

The second-half saw two goals ruled out as well, with both of them coming from the eventual scorers. On those decisions made by the assistant referee, Cotterill said: “I haven’t actually seen them back, one looks really close to me, the other one I think probably was offside. I don’t want to answer that one where I might not be correct with it.”

Forest Green have picked up six points from the two games that Cotterill has been absent from the touchline due to a ban.

“I can leave the club tonight if you want, if that is what you are implying,” Cotterill joked. “We did a lot of things that we do in training, I didn’t have a touchline ban from training, I ended up turning up at training this week. It has been difficult for me, maybe in the first-half I might have able to get to them (the players) a little bit quicker, but I am delighted for my staff, they were great.”

Forest Green fans were in fine voice at the New Lawn all evening long, which Cotterill gave high praise to.

“I thought our crowd were great tonight, I would say to them ‘please don’t just turn up because we are playing a team that are top-of-the-table, we need you in those other games when we are playing teams that are not top', but I thought they were first-class, maybe that is because I was sat in with them.”

Rovers’ next game is away to Southend United next weekend (3pm), giving them another full week to prepare for the match.

Saturday evening's result puts them two points clear of York and they will be looking to make it eight games unbeaten.

Forest Green Rovers: Ward; Long, Tozer, Moore-Taylor, Robson; McCann, May, Bunker; McAllister (Doidge 90+4), Quigley (Cardwell 77), Knowles (Jenks 73). Subs not used: Searle, Lavinier, Omotoye.

York City: Male; Felix, Fagan-Walcott, Howe, John (King 43); Batty (Armstrong 69), Hunt, Ajiboye, Pearce, Nathaniel-George (Aguiar 79); Akinyemi (Sinclair 79).

Referee: Benjamin Speedie.

Attendance: 2,697 (604 away).