Martin Paterson felt the nerves during the end of Burton’s 3-2 win over Reading which kept their League One survival hopes alive.
Mason Bennett and Mustapha Carayol put Albion 2-0 ahead inside 11 minutes before Lewis Wing halved the deficit for Reading.
Bobby Kamwa ensured Burton entered half-time 3-1 up, with Sam Smith’s penalty on the hour mark setting up a nervy finish that the hosts survived.
Burton’s first home win in nine attempts left them five points clear of Cheltenham, who occupy the final relegation place and have a game in hand.
“First half we were good,” Paterson said.
“I knew how I wanted to address this game at home with two wingers and change to a 4-3-3 in possession and I like it, it suited us.
“We made life hard for ourselves defensively, in moments and in our decision making and I honestly think it was down to nerves because it was such a big game. The players knew that we needed points on the board.
“We looked good in the first part of the game but then second half I had to look at the position we were in and not necessarily what I wanted to do, or how I would like to play.
“I changed shape out of necessity to see out the game. It was nerve-racking at the end if I am being completely honest.”
Carayol and Kamwa have been mainly used as substitutes, but Paterson was delighted with the impact his two wingers had.
“Muzzy was fantastic today,” he enthused.
“I was nervous for him today carrying a knock and Bobby Kamwa was good for us too and just needs that match fitness.”
With Reading already safe at the end of a tumultuous season, Ruben Selles was left frustrated by a poor opening to the game that ultimately cost his team anything from the game.
“It was a poor first half from us,” he admitted.
“The opponent hit us with some direct balls, and we had a couple of mistakes when we conceded the first two goals
“When we score at 2-1, we thought it could give us some energy for the game and some momentum back and then the third goal was a disappointing moment for us.
“I think in the second half we came out to win the game. We scored the second one and then we kept them in the box, but they managed to keep the score and it was disappointing to not get anything more.
“We knew it was going to be a tough game with them battling to survive and they did their job. We had a couple of moments of losing our application and conceding goals.”
Postecoglou: Spurs have a confidence problem to overcome
Ange Postecoglou says that Tottenham need to "overcome" their low confidence after suffering a 4-2 defeat to Liverpool on Sunday.
Spurs slipped to their fourth consecutive Premier League defeat, being left to bemoan their slow start as they found themselves 4-0 down by the hour mark thanks to goals from Mohamed Salah, Andrew Robertson, Cody Gakpo and Harvey Elliott.
Richarlison came off the bench to salvage some pride for Spurs, scoring one before setting up Son Heung-min for a goal on his 300th Premier League appearance.
Spurs had the opportunity to cut the gap to the top four after Aston Villa’s defeat to Brighton, but they remain seven points off a Champions League spot.
Postecoglou’s side still have a game in hand over the Villans, though he was sure that Spurs would be able to put their recent poor run behind them.
Asked if Spurs had a confidence problem, Postecoglou told Sky Sports: "Maybe in the front third there is.
"It probably is a bit of a lack of confidence, but again, that's something the guys have to work through.
"You have to find a way to overcome that because, ultimately, if you don't put pressure on the opposition in the front third after you've worked your way up there, they're going to get comfortable with their position."
Spurs have won just one of their last nine Premier League away games, failing to win any of the last five.
Despite that run extending at Anfield, Postecoglou highlighted what he thought was an improvement on their recent performances.
He continued: "Obviously a hugely disappointing outcome for us but at least we were more like ourselves today in terms of our football.
"Our last two away games at Newcastle and Chelsea, apart from the results which weren't great either, we just didn't try and play our football.
"I thought today, even in the first half, some of our football, our pressing was back to where it should be."
Roma 1-1 Juventus: Juve miss chance to close gap to second after draw with Roma
Juventus were held to a 1-1 draw at Roma on Sunday, missing the chance to close in on Milan in second place in Serie A.
Roma took the lead after 15 minutes when Romelu Lukaku found himself in the perfect position to tap in the rebound from a Bryan Cristante shot.
Bremer levelled with a header for Juventus just after the half-hour mark when Federico Chiesa picked him out inside the box from a corner.
Both sides had chances to find a winner in the final minutes, with Roma keeper Mile Svilar making a fingertip save to push Manuel Locatelli's volley over the bar.
Third-placed Juventus have 66 points, five fewer than Milan, who drew 3-3 with Genoa earlier on Sunday. Roma are fifth with 60 points.
Data Debrief: Leading from the back
Since scoring his first Serie A goal in the 2019-20 season, Bremer is the defender with the most headed goals in the Big-5 European leagues, netting 13 in total. Each of his last seven goals have been headers.
His goal was enough to earn Juventus a point today, but it means that they have drawn each of their last four in the competition - a first since February-March 2012 under Antonio Conte.
Chelsea 8-0 Bristol City: Blues rout hands Hayes perfect home send off
Guro Reiten starred as Chelsea thrashed already-relegated Bristol City 8-0 to keep their title hopes alive in the Women's Super League on Sunday.
The Norwegian scored four goals, netting the opener from the penalty spot to get Emma Hayes' last home game in charge off to the best start.
She scored the other three in the second half in just over 20 minutes, while teeing up Agnes Beever-Jones for the seventh goal with just two minutes left.
Beever-Jones got two, with Sjoeke Nusken and Niamh Charles also adding to the scoreline to eradicate the goal-difference advantage that Manchester City, who lost to Arsenal earlier on Sunday, had over them.
Chelsea move to within three points of the Citizens, with a game in hand over them, remaining in the fight to lift their fifth-consecutive league title.
Data Debrief:
Chelsea have scored eight goals in a game for the first time since December 2022 against Leicester City, a match they also won 8-0.
The Blues have scored in their last six games in the WSL, though it does not come close to their longest run of games with a goal in the competition - a run of 20 from April 2023 to February 2024.
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