James Tomkins made his return from a thigh injury when entering the fray as an early substitute at Stoke City on Saturday and he was delighted to play his part in a stirring West Ham United comeback.
The Hammers were in trouble when Mame Diouf added to Victor Moses' opener early in the second half at the Britannia Stadium, but the Londoners showed adrmirable fortitude to claim a point.
First Enner Valencia guided a diving header beyond Asmir Begovic, then Stewart Downing slammed home from inside the box, leaving the near-3,000 strong travelling crowd with reason to cheer.
Tomkins had to dig in alongside his fellow defenders in the face of a strong first hour from the home side and he was delighted to go home with a point.
"Going 2-0 down was a disappointment, but to show the character [to come back] shows the team spirit and the confidence," he explained.
"We never doubted ourselves even though we did go 2-0 down. It's a hard place to come to, so it felt like a win in the end to get a point. It's a good result.
"It obviously caught me by surprise with Reidy going off, but you have to come on and start [from the off]. Stoke started well and had the momentum, so you've got to be ready for it.
"It was nice to get back out there. It was my first time back in the squad and I felt like I put a good shift in considering the circumstances."
Tomkins emphasised the importance of building on the previous weekend's victory over Manchester City and he says the two-goal fightback meant it was mission accomplished.
He continued: "It's nice to come away from here not losing - we're on a good run at the moment and it's important not to lose games. it does feel like a little win, even though it's just a point and it's all good going into the Villa game next week.
"Like the Gaffer said before the game, you can't beat Manchester City then go to Stoke City, and no disrespect to them, and leave with a bad taste in the mouth.
"It was important to come here and get a result. That's our bread and butter, so to come here and do that is great."
West Ham's fightback came following a half-time tactical switch which saw Carlton Cole come on up front and Enner Valencia move to a wider position and Tomkins felt the pair worked well in tandem.
He added: "Putting a big man like Coley up front means he's always going to try and hold balls up for us and cause the defence a nuiscance.
"He put himself about, and Enner's scored a great header. Then Stewie's nicked one with his right peg, and that's really good for them.
"Enner will cause havoc this season, hopefully he won't get too tired having played in the World Cup, but Saturday shows what a talented player he is."