Winger Brennan Dickenson’s second goal for the club was his first for this season, and his crisp volley paved the way for the Blues to register a good home win against Salford City on Saturday afternoon.
A player who prides himself on goals and assists, he said: “I’m feeling good. I got my goal so I definitely feel like I’ve arrived now.
“The gaffer and I were having a little in-house joke about getting a goal before September. When I went back over to my position I shouted to him that it’s too late, because it’s already September, but I’m happy to get it.
“As it was coming to me I knew I just needed to get something clean on it. Anything could happen, as long as I made a clean strike. Luckily it went in and I feel I hit it well enough for it to go in.
“I probably could have hit it a little bit sweeter but at the end of the day it’s gone over the line and I’m happy to get my first goal of the season.
“It’s a great feeling to get my first goal at Brunton Park and hopefully there’s more to come. It just feels better to get that second goal and get the win, and be a part of that.”
Spending much of the game on patrol up and down the flanks, he produced a string of deliveries that provided real temptation for United’s forwards on the day.
“I spoke to the gaffer abut where I should play during the summer,” he explained. “I prefer wide left, but I’ve played down the middle and on the right.
“I like to be a utility player and I’ll do whatever job the gaffer needs me to do, but this season I feel being out wide is where I’m most comfortable.
“I’m always looking to cross and sometimes they don’t always come off. I’m frustrated about that, but this seemed to be one of those days where I got my crosses right.
“The strikers can’t always get on the end of everything and I don’t get everything right all the time. But as long as we give 110 per cent and we do all we can to get our goals that’s all that matters.
“It goes without saying that I want more goals as well. I want that feeling what you score. It’s a great feeling, and it helps the team to win, that’s an even better feeling come the end of the game.
“We’re all very demanding of each other with these things. I want players on the end of what I do and they’re demanding from me to get a cross right. As soon as we cross the right line everyone demands as much as possible, that’s the way it is.
“As soon as it’s finished, it’s done and we move on to the next game. Like I say, the strikers can’t always get there, I can’t get my crosses right all the time. It’s frustrating, especially because I’m quite hard on myself.
“We try our best to get everything right. Sometimes it doesn’t come off but, in this game, brilliant from everyone.”
And part of the job of working out wide is covering the yards, with both attacking and defending duties to attend to.
“I kept myself as fit as I could during the close season,” he explained. “I missed the odd day of pre-season just as a precaution, but I’m feeling good. I think a full pre-season has really helped and I’m thankful that my body is where it is.
“I’ve played a part in all of the games this season, it would be nice to get a few more 90 minutes but I got a bit of cramp towards the end and I thought it was best to come off rather than risk anything for the last ten minutes or so.
“There is a lot of running with the role I’ve bene given and, yeah, it’s tough, I can’t deny it, especially on a big pitch like ours. But when teams come here they don’t realise how big the pitch is and we’re used to playing on it.
“It’s part and parcel of the game, if you run harder than the other team you’re more likely to be on top. I felt we ran harder than them, worked harder and were on top for most of it. But it’s been tough.”
Second half dominance played a big part in United’s victory, with the Blues turning the screw before and after Jon Mellish bagged the winner.
“We made a formation change and I feel like 4-3-3 is our most comfortable formation,” he explained. “We have to be able to adapt to how other teams are going to play so sometimes we make little changes to help us win the game.
“Sometimes it is as simple as a little tweak and something clicks. From that second half you can see it clicked, I felt we dominated more than anything. We didn’t feel threatened at the back, credit to the back four, they were really solid, especially when the big guy (Elliott) came on, they dealt with him really well.
“In the first half they came out fast but so did we. We got our goal first, they kept coming at us, and Mags made a great save as well. Credit to him. Coming in at 1-1 at half time was a bit disheartening but we then had a completely different 45 minutes. The way we finished the game is credit to all the boys.”
“It was good to celebrate with the fans as well,” he added. “We need them in the stadium as much as possible and for them to keep as loud as possible, to keep us going.
“When you get a bit tired there’s nothing better than that little cheer or little egg-on that gets you going again and gives you that boost of energy. Especially when Mags gave me the ball in the second half and I’m clean through, and the fans are just going mad, I just keep running, keep running, focus on getting a good ball in the box.
“That’s what fans cheering can add for you. And then when you win its superb. It feels much better, especially if you look at the Colchester and Leyton Orient games, we should absolutely be winning those games by three or four.
“Whether that’s keepers making good saves or us not being clinical enough, I don’t know. It’s frustrating in those games to not come out with three points, but we definitely deserved the win in this one.
“Hopefully this is the real start for us playing at home, getting that win, and securing the three points. And we want to replicate that away as well.
“Crawley is a long one but we take it on the chin, get down there on the Friday and prepare like we prepare for any game. No matter where they are in the league, what they’re doing, we just concentrate on ourselves and that’s the best we can do.”
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