TIME TO FIGHT – MANAGER REACTION

The Gaffer looks back on the weeks football. 

It certainly wasn’t an ideal week for the Whites with defeats coming from teams at opposite ends of the table. Relegation is mathematically possible but we hold an eight point advantage on our rivals, with Cheshunt and Hungerford both having face tough opposition on the penultimate weekend of the campaign. Farnborough will be a tough challenge with the hosts still mathematically able to make the play-offs, although it looks like they may need snookers.

Speaking to Kent Online Sport, Mitch Brundle was both disappointed and showing desire in getting the boys over the line. ‘I think they took their foot off the gas. They stopped doing the things that got them there. We were just careless in possession.’ When speaking about the heavy 5-1 home defeat to Oxford City. ‘Most of the goals came from us actually being in control of the ball and moving it, trying to open up spaces and giving away sloppy passes. They counter well. They have got players who score and had the desire, and they ran past a couple of players in our team which is not acceptable.

We’re going to need every player to roll their sleeves up now and go “Right, we need to fight for a massive result.”

Some of the goals we conceded came from us being in possession. We’ve looked into all the goals and the work-rate to actually defend the goal with their lives wasn’t good enough. We kept letting them get in with easy chances. The desire to stop people from scoring just wasn’t there. You can’t have that at this level, especially against a team fighting for the play-offs. I put myself on up top to just try and put myself in a position where we could actually get up the pitch and stop conceding. It didn’t seem to work that way. We were missing the experienced boys.

But Will and Andi have done well in certain games. It’s just a lack of leadership, really. They’re still young kids but they have got to grow up quickly. You’re in the men’s team, you have earned the right to get there, and you have got to step up to the plate now. You have got to demand from the experienced boys. You’ve got to be really dominant and aggressive as a centre-half. That’s what centre-halves do.’

Defeat to basement club Concord Rangers was not in the script either but it isn’t all doom and gloom just yet. ‘I said that from eight or nine games ago. You’re never safe until those teams, mathematically, can’t get to you. There’s always these things in football where something extraordinary happens so we can’t afford to switch off. ‘We’re going to need the experience, we’re going to need the energy, we’re going to need the athleticism and the desire. We’re going to need every player to roll their sleeves up now and go “Right, we need to fight for a massive result.”

Keep the Faith.

COYW