Assistant manager Gav Skelton spoke to us after last night’s Cumberland Cup victory over Whitehaven Miners Social.
“It was a professional job,” he said. “It was pleasing that the lads went about it in the right way. They can be difficult games, but we approached it in the right way, they did themselves as professional footballers proud, really, in the way they respected the game, respected the competition, respected the opposition and tried to do things correctly in the 90 minutes.
“The work they got from it was pleasing and I hope, in spite of the score, Whitehaven in some way enjoyed the night. I thought they tried to keep going in the right way, they didn’t try to get too physical, they tried to keep playing out from the back, the keeper made some good saves. Credit to them and from our point of view it was a really professional way of going about the game.
“They’re professional footballers and it’s their duty to go out and be professional, and they were. We spoke about being respectful, keeping good standards, making right decisions. Sometimes, being ultra-critical, when we got into that final third we were wasteful missing the target, which is nit-picking when you win 13-0, but you always look for little improvements.
“I thought they approached it the right way. They can be difficult because it’s a no-win, it’s a difficult one to approach. In terms of their attitude and application, it was first class.
“Hopefully it was an enjoyable evening for everybody, without the stresses and trials and tribulations of the season so far. It’s nice for a short period but the main focus of course is the league on Saturday.”
“It was always the plan to give Josh [Emmanuel] 45 minutes,” he continued. “He played in a back three but we asked him to try and play as a wing-back, to get his work in, and he did that. He was overlapping from minute one. He probably wanted to stay out because his enthusiasm is infectious, he has a really good personality and attitude towards work.
“With the minutes him and Ben Barclay got tonight, they’re closer to being involved on Saturday. It’s beneficial, and just getting back onto a full size pitch gives them a reality.”
“The lads were professional right until the end which was the pleasing thing, because it can drop off and you can get sloppy. Don’t get me wrong, we were wasteful in possession at times, and in front of goal, which sounds silly when you’ve scored 13 goals, but you want those standards all the time. You can go right through everyone – they all went about it right and that is the biggest thing coming from the game, the attitude and application.
“Whitehaven were really respectful when they came, and they were respectful in how they approached the game, how they tried to play out from the back, how they kept going – they made some good blocks, the keeper made some good saves, and I’ve been involved in games where it can get a bit physical but did they didn’t do that tonight.”
