Dave Challinor hails the strength of Stockport’s squad after win at Harrogate

Stockport manager Dave Challinor hailed the strength of his squad after a side featuring nine changes to Saturday’s starting line-up won 1-0 at Harrogate in the Carabao Cup.

Connor Jennings settled matters with a 53rd-minute penalty as County also celebrated their first win back as an EFL outfit following consecutive league defeats against Barrow and Stevenage.

The Hatters chief will now face a welcome selection headache for this weekend’s home match against Colchester.

He said: “The lads who played tonight have done themselves a favour from the first opportunities that they have had. They produced good performances and we have got a strong squad.

“I said to all the players at the start of the season that they’d get opportunities and they’ve helped us get our first win of the season, which is great for us. Now, we can look forward to the next round which will bring different opportunities.”

On the side’s overall display, Challinor added: “It was much more like us. I thought it was a really good performance, especially in the first half.

“It was a game where both teams wanted to try and play, which is a bit different to what we faced in the first two games.”

Home boss Simon Weaver also drew positives from the contest in defeat, saying: “They were on top during the first 20 minutes, but we played well after that and there were some terrific signs in terms of people coming out of their shells and the way we kept passing and probing.

“We just didn’t get a finish on any of our chances, but there were some excellent individual performances from a new team that is still gelling.

“We had enough territory to get a result and the players gave it their all, so there were plenty of positives.”