Stoke boss Tony Pulis challenged his side to keep up the good work after they emerged from a mini slump to grind out a 1-0 victory at Norwich.The high-flying Potters went into the clash at Carrow Road with just one point from their previous three Championship games but got back to winning ways courtesy of Mamady Sidibe's second goal of the season.

The giant striker nodded home a long throw from Rory Delap 13 minutes into the second half to settle a disjointed encounter played out in difficult windy conditions.

Norwich should have taken at least a point from the match on the basis of possession and chances created and had a bad evening in front of goal, summed up in injury time when top scorer Jamie Cureton missed a target from a yard or so out.

Pulis was just grateful for the three points after his side's recent wobble.

"After being held at home on Saturday it was vital we came here and got a win," he said. "This is a big week for us, with three games in eight days, and we started off pretty well by taking four points from the first two. "I'm absolutely delighted to have come away from here with a win because this is never an easy place to come to. Norwich made it very difficult for us, as I knew they would, but it was only in the last 10 minutes that I was getting a little worried.

"I thought they were going to equalise at the end and I will have to buy Jamie a bottle of champagne if we end up going up now. I've known him since he was seven-years-old when I was a player at Bristol Rovers and I know he normally sticks those sorts of chances away.

"We rode our luck a little towards the end but overall I thought we were good value for the win.

"Now we've just got to keep this up. We had two bad results, but only one bad performance, and having picked up a point on Saturday and another three today the players have now got to go on another run.

"We've got eight games left and if we can do what we did a little earlier in the season we'll be right up there. We know it won't be easy but that's what we've got to do."

Opposite number Glenn Roeder felt his side had been extremely unlucky but had little sympathy for his players.

"It's rough justice, but rough justice of our own making", he said. "We know Stoke were good at set plays and we've worked very hard over the last two days preparing for that. Generally we deal well with them but for the vital one two or three players, including our goalkeeper, were found wanting.

"It was a ridiculously poor goal to concede and we are very disappointed about it."

Roeder felt that the mistake should not have been important, with Norwich having created enough chances to have comfortably won the game.

"On the balance of play we should have won comfortably but a lack of killer instinct in front of goal had come back to haunt us.

"When we missed that last chance from a yard out it just about summed up our night. I was actually very pleased with our performance, it was the best we have played for five or six weeks, and we were by far the better team but the fact is we have lost the game."

Roeder was disappointed to see top scorer Cureton miss the best two chances that came Norwich's way. "If you look at Jamie's career he has always scored goals at a certain level but he was guilty of two bad misses tonight. He should certainly have put one of them away and probably both.

"If I could get a striker in on loan who could hit the back of the net I'd take him in now.

"In fact I'd take two if possible, but at this time of the season they are not easy to find."

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