Reaction: Hoedt On Sunderland Win & Awards Double

Wesley Hoedt spoke to watfordfc.com after the Hornets claimed a 1-0 success over Sunderland in the Sky Bet Championship, in the last home game of the 2023/24 season.

A Ryan Andrews goal sealed the first Golden Boys league victory at Vicarage Road since the 3-2 win over Norwich City on November 28.

There was also a double personal celebration for Hoedt, who won both the Graham Taylor Player of the Season and Goal of the Season awards.

Read what he had to say below...

Finally! I think that's what the team deserved, and the fans deserved as well.

I think we started really well in the first 20 minutes, and we were completely focused on a result.

Recently we have been sharper in the second half, but today was a bit vice-versa.

The first 20 minutes we had them all under control, and then we started dropping back a bit, they had some chances, and we couldn't control the game anymore.

The manager tried to change some things at half-time, the game opened up a bit and it could have gone both ways. I think it's a deserved win.

I think the winless run we've been on [at home] was way too long. The happiness and positivity is back amongst the fans.

We need to be honest and look in the mirror. This season was not good enough, it's the honest truth. We will try to finish on a high next week, and then it's time to recover, re-think some things, and come back for pre-season and make sure this club is back where it belongs.

I think everyone is very happy with Clevs, he deserves it [becoming permanent Head Coach]. Him and his staff have been brilliant.

They came in and they did the job really well. The moment he came in we were bleeding; we were not on the right track. I think we've played eight games and we have only lost one.

Of course we have had too many draws but we know this. It's way too much if you want to push for the play-off places. That is why we are in the spot we are in at the moment.

The awards are of course a nice thing.

I have to thank the fans for voting and making it happen. So, I want to thank them, and for me on a personal level, it's really nice, it's acknowledgment of what you've done all season.

I think I've had a very steady season, and that results in winning those two trophies.

I haven't watched [the Goal of the Season v Hull] back that many times.

In the beginning I saw it everywhere because it was all over Twitter. Like I said, it was an intuition thing and something we had trained on during those weeks.

It is nice and it's also a memory. The trophy is a nice acknowledgement.

I think ever since Clevs came in, the rhythm has been switched up. I think everyone is on a positive note again and the fans as well, they are behind the team.

We have been struggling so it's quite hard to not be winning that many games. I think if you look at the results, we have also had five clean sheets in the last eight games. And like our captain Dan Bachmann said, that wins you championships. That needs to be the basis of next year.

So, if we can add a lot of goals to it, then we will be pushing for better places.