Tony Pulis delighted training ground corner routine paid off

Salomon Rondon glanced in Jonathan Leko's in-swinging delivery in the 91st minute to snatch a draw at the Bet365 Stadium in Pulis's 1,000th game of management after Joe Allen had given Stoke the lead.

And the 58-year-old was delighted to see the header sail into the far corner, not only because of the occasion, but because his side had worked on the move on Friday.

But Rondon, who stole the ball off the head of Jonny Evans to score his third goal of the season, wasn't even supposed to be the recipient.

"We did that yesterday and had Jonny Evans and Gareth running across the front of it," revealed Pulis.

"The first one we did was from James McClean on the other side and Gareth scores.

"So we've got Leko taking it from the other side, but you think what sort of quality will Jon hit it with?

"It was a fantastic set-play and luckily for us it's a wonderful header from Salomon."

Stoke started the day bottom of the table, but Pulis - who managed the Potters for a total of 10 seasons - said their position belies their quality.

"They've got an array of talent," he said. "They are where they are so you come here, but when you get the team sheet, on the pitch and the off the pitch, they've got a very good strong squad.

"We knew it was going to be tough. They're fighting for their lives.

"When they scored the goal I thought we showed great character and attitude to get back into it. I'd have been very disappointed if we'd have lost the game today."

Allan Nyom was making his first senior start for the club, and he had a busy afternoon alongside fellow full-back Craig Dawson, as they tried to deal with Stoke's two main threats, Marko Arnautovic and Xherdan Shaqiri.

"The big thing today was their two wide players and whether we could stop them," said Pulis.

"We wanted to try and stop them. Like I say they're outstanding players with great talent. We did well.

"We're unfortunate with the goal because the ball just drops for (Joe) Allen to score.

"I'm pleased with the attitude and commitment of the players - it was fantastic."

Referee Martin Atkinson turned down two Stoke penalty appeals either side of half-time when Erik Pieters went down under challenges from Matt Phillips.

Under-fire Stoke boss Mark Hughes thought, on another day, his team could have been given a spot kick.

"I've seen the first one," said Hughes. "I thought maybe he got in front. I've seen them given, but it was a close call and could have gone either way.

"The second one I haven't seen. He was in space in the box. Why would he go down unless he was impeded?"

But the day belonged to Pulis, who picked up an away point on a landmark day in his career to keep the Baggies in the top half of the Premier League.

"You couldn't have picked a better place for me to get 1,000 games," he said. "The place is wonderful. The crowd were absolutely fantastic to me as a manager here.

"People forget where we started from and the two-and-a-half years with the Icelandic people. People forget that and only remember my time with Peter.

"It's been stitched into my body this football club in lots of respects - and my family. It's always a result I look for. The Coates family are wonderful people and I'll always have respect for them."

He's planning to have a celebratory glass of wine once he gets home to Bournemouth tonight, but it might be a lonely one.

"I'd say I'd sit in with Deb, but she'll be watching Come Dancing and all that stuff, so I won't be sitting in there!" he said.