Sitting through the game against Hull was painful at times, but in the end it was worth it as we took all three points.

Of course, we are still not in the clear, but should we beat West Bromwich Albion this weekend then safety will be well within our grasp.

It's hard to say which was louder come the final whistle on Saturday – the cheers of joy or the massive sighs of relief.

To be fair, it wasn't the greatest of performances, but who cares?

At this point in time you can keep your sexy football, and I'll settle for grinding out results, even if it isn't easy on either the eye or the nerves.

You sense a feeling of nervousness throughout the clash, and towards the end I was worried that a killer blow was coming our way.

Thankfully it didn't arrive, and we held on for what could be a vital victory.

Like I say, it wasn't the best of games, but I'm not complaining.

In fact the only thing I found disappointing about the game was one of South Shields's very own – Hull boss Phil Brown.

Brown deserves credit for getting City into the Premier League, and even for making a decent fist of keeping them there.

However, his antics at the Stadium of Light left a bit of a sour taste in my mouth.

Every little decision against his side brought an embarrassing display from Brown for the benefit of the fourth official.

What he hoped to achieve by thrashing his arms in the air and constantly complaining I don't know, but it didn't seem to work.

I certainly wasn't alone in my disapproval as one fan made it clear in no uncertain terms that he thought Brown was a "disgrace to Shields and a cheat".

I wouldn't go as far as to echo those sentiments, but what I will say is that if moaning was a sport, Brown (on Saturday's showing) would be competing for the Champions League title, rather than battling relegation.

Still, I'm not bitter and I certainly won't be hoping that the City boss and his side fail to beat the dreaded drop.

In all honesty, I couldn't care less who goes down, just as long as it's not us.

One of the plus points from the win over the Tigers was that, once again, our players seemed up for the fight.

That could well be down to Sunderland boss Ricky Sbragia pinning photocopies of an article, where Brown talked about the Black Cats wasting money on players who were not worth it.

Hopefully though, it was down to the fact that they are willing to give their all for the cause.

If they can continue to do that then we might just be OK. Fingers crossed.