Head Coach Chris Wilder described Watford’s 2-0 win over Bristol City as a step in the right direction, with an own goal and a second-half João Pedro strike powering the Hornets to a first win in five.

The home side got off to a fast start at Vicarage Road when City forward Harry Cornick diverted a João Pedro cross into his own net to make it 1-0 in just the sixth minute, and the Boy from Brazil did eventually get his name on the scoresheet to seal the three points soon after the interval.

Following an encouraging draw at Coventry City last time out (Monday April 10), Wilder was keen to deliver the fans a performance and a result to be proud of, and he was pleased with the nature of his team’s first victory since mid-March.

“I’ve talked about us getting things right, and although I don’t think it was as easy as the scoreline suggests, ultimately we got what we were after today,” Wilder said. “Hopefully we’ve given the supporters something to smile about for the rest of the weekend.

“It was a tight game - as I always thought it was going to be - but I thought when the confidence flowed, we looked a good side. We went a bit negative after we went ahead, which was a bit disappointing, but that’s probably a sign of where we’re at confidence-wise.

“They’ve got some good young players, and Dan [Bachmann] has come up with a big save at a key moment in the game. We’ve seen us concede in those instances in recent weeks, and that can be a bit like a pin in a balloon, where you lose energy and confidence, but we got through it and earned the clean sheet.

“In the end we did what we had to do to get the win, and I’m delighted with the clean sheet, the goals we scored, and ultimately the result.”

While there were two changes to the XI that started in Coventry - with Bachmann and Keinan Davis returning - Academy graduate Ryan Andrews retained his place in defence, and Wilder hailed the influence of the 18-year-old on his home debut.

He said: “João Pedro will get a lot of the credit today for his flashes of skill and his role in the goals, but I think Ryan can be really proud of his display today. The crowd were with him throughout, and it was great to see him get that support.

“He’s impressed me - as have a few of the Academy boys - and today he gave us energy and commitment, he made tackles, and he was good with the ball. We’re all delighted for him, and it’s great that his day was made even more special with the win.”

Carrying new-found winning momentum, the Golden Boys don’t have to wait long for a return to match action, with a home clash against Cardiff City next up on Wednesday evening (April 19, 7.45pm KO).

With four games of the campaign remaining Watford sit just three points off the play-off places, but Wilder insists he and his staff are focusing solely on finding a good level of consistency and trying to gain maximum points from each game as it comes.

He added: “We’re not thinking about the play-offs, not at all. The table obviously gets talked about a lot, but honestly we’re not even looking at it.

“I just wanted to win today, and I wanted a performance. I’m looking for us to get another performance under our belts on Wednesday, but we know it won’t be easy. Cardiff have a lot to play for, so it’s a good test for us to try and back up today.”