“We’ve had to fast-track things and look to adapt quickly, so this was a fantastic result for us,” said Mackay. “We had eight players making their debuts which was incredible.
“We had England internationals playing against us and West Ham are expected to go straight back up. I thought it was a top-class game. End-to-end really.
“It would have been a surprise if they did not have chances against us, but it was an open game and we caused them problems too.
“It was outstanding the way we found space to play some good football.”
And on two players who made telling contributions at either end of the pitch
“Kenny (Miller) is a little ring-rusty, but he put a lot of effort in and he got his reward. He scores goals wherever he goes and he’s a leader too.
“David *Marshall) needs a bit of confidence put in him at times, but I thought his handling, particularly near the end, was exceptional.”
Opposite number Sam Allardyce was left to rue missed chances and had to face a number of boos at the final whistle. Welcome to the Championship Sam.
"From our point of view we've mastered the game, created numerous chances and today was one of those days when we were not clinical enough to punish the opposition and then we paid the ultimate price right at the very end.
"We've lost a game we really should have won. I told the players that you don't always get what you deserve but don't go and throw a game away, and that's what we've done.
"A point is not the end of the world after a good performance, it should have been three, but you get one and you move on. But we didn't even do that so it's a hugely disappointing day for everyone. As ever the expectation is high and we haven't lived up to that expectation today."