Pearson felt the majority of Luton's squad would have played through the pain in Championship decider against Blackburn

Defender Matty Pearson was convinced that the rest of the Luton squad would have put themselves through the pain barrier to try and help the Hatters stay up last season.

Going into the final game, Town needed to beat Blackburn Rovers at Kenilworth Road to ensure Championship survival, which they ultimately did, triumphing 3-2.

Pearson, who had missed the previous three matches with an ankle injury, came off the bench with 12 minutes to go, as Town kept their opponents out in the closing stages, with manager Nathan Jones declaring 'a normal human being' would have missed the game.

However, the centre half felt he simply had to put his body on the line to help the cause in any way he could, saying: “Luckily I only stayed on for 15 minutes, any more and I think I’d have been hobbling off the pitch again.

"It was just one of them, I don’t ever think I’d be in that situation again where I’m out for six to eight weeks and trying to get back in two.

"I didn't even do a training session, it was just a case of, I had a little jog on it in the day before and see how it went on the day.

"It was the right call from the manager I think and the right call for the club, we stayed up and that’s all we wanted.

“I’d like to think the majority of our lads would do that, any way you can help along the way, you’ve got to be ready, even if you are carrying knocks.

"If you can help us, I think anyone would put their body on the line for the team and that moment, it just felt lucky that it was the last game, we needed a win and it all fell perfectly.”

With safety secured, the party went on long into the night and Pearson, who had played a vital role in winning promotion to the second tier, felt the feelings eclipsed those of the previous campaign.

He continued: “To be playing these calibre of games, especially your bigger teams, it’s a no-brainer.

"Last year was probably the best, staying in this league and playing against proper teams.

“It was one of the maddest seasons I have ever had, with lockdown, manager (Graeme Jones) leaving, manager (Nathan Jones) coming back.

“It was a long season but you can enjoy those long seasons when you stay up and stay in this league.

“It would have been the worst if we had gone down but we didn’t.

"It was a long season and it seemed to never end but we got there in the end.”

When asked what it had been like being among the substitutes during the Blackburn match, as Town found themselves potentially in the position of having to rely on other results to stay up, Pearson said: “I’m hearing what results are what, hearing Barnsley score, hearing other teams score and it’s not an ideal situation because you’re relying on other teams.

"We went 1-0 down, it was all twists and turns and then when you come on you just have to forget about that and do your job.

"Thankfully we did and got over the line.”

When the season was suspended due to coronavirus, the Hatters found themselves cut adrift at the bottom, six points from safety, seven in all reality due to their woeful goal difference.

Once it restarted four months later, Pearson felt the players always had belief they could stay up, with the enforced absence actually working in their favour.

He said: "I think we did (feel Luton could stay up), we were a bit unlucky at times during the season.

"There were certain games where we’d concede a late goal, but then just before the lockdown, we started picking up results, picking up points, and it all came together.

"The time off made us more hungry, especially having time to reflect on what happened.

"We stuck together, got through a bunch of games and we did it."

The return of boss Jones also played a huge part too, with Luton taking 16 points from a possible 27 to pull off their great escape.

Pearson was happy to see the manager who originally brought him to Kenilworth Road back in the hot seat, adding: "I think it just clicked, he knows what 75 per cent of us are all about, especially the lads he brought in like me.

"He knew everything about us, so it just worked perfectly and in a time like that, to know people's strengths and weaknesses, it was perfect for the manager to have, he knew what card to play and when.

“I was happy he came back as he knew everything about me.

"It’s not someone new who needs to get to know you, and know what you’re good at and not good at, he already knew, and it felt perfect and as a team we came through."