Manager Micky Adams likened Port Vale's 1-0 win at Bradford on Saturday to robbing a sweet shop.
Adams praised the character and resilience of his team as second-placed Vale ended City's 100% home record with a goal from leading scorer Tom Pope.
Adams said: "In terms of character and resilience, to a man, we stood our ground and we have managed to scrape three points.
"This is a tough place to come. I watched Bradford absolutely slaughter Burton in the League Cup in midweek and we knew they would throw a lot of balls into our box. We rode our luck at times, but we also showed good defensive work.
"We had a bit of fortune for our goal, it was a back-pass from one of their boys, but Tom Pope is in a rich vein of form and he stuck it away well. To come away with a result like that means I have gone to the sweet shop and taken away three points.
"Let's take nothing away from Bradford. I thought they were excellent and they will cause a lot of teams problems. They got after us and for us to go in at half-time leading 1-0 was hard on them, but I will take it - it was a welcome three points."
