BOSS Paul Smith praised the work-rate of his players as Redditch United took another big step towards their Southern League Central survival aim.

Reds beat play-off chasing Coalville Town 2-1 away on Saturday thanks to an Andy Parsons opener and an own goal. Coalville pulled one back late on but Smith's men saw out the closing stages to seal another impressive victory.

It means in-form Redditch have lost just one of their last seven games heading into this Saturday's visit of seventh-placed Biggleswade.

It was the effort and hard work of his players that pleased Smith most as they capped a memorable March.

He said: "If you take the Stourbridge game out of it, it has been a really good month for us and we've played some really good stuff.

"The players are working hard and picking up points at an important time in the season.

"I think we fully deserved the win at Coalville. It is a tough place to go and they are right in the play-off mix but we outworked them massively and I think that was the key to getting the win.

"Our pre-season started in October really after I came in and we were a little bit behind everyone else, so it's no surprise to see us finishing the season strongly now we've gelled together properly and really know each other as a group.

"The remit when I came in was to keep the club in this division and we are now very close to achieving that.

"There is still work to be done but if the players continue to give that sort of commitment then we won't have any trouble."

Smith has a fully fit squad to choose from ahead of the Biggleswade clash.

He added: "Biggleswade won't be looking forward to coming here now. Our record has been good against those sides near the play-offs and it's important we get two good training sessions in this week and be just as competitive again."