Grantham bosses disappointed by postponement

The Gingerbreads joint managers feelings about last Saturday’s postponement at Rainworth matched those of the fans.

Given the recent results for the Gingerbreads, a free Saturday was one of the last things Jimmy Albans and Wayne Hallcro wanted for their side. The postponement means Grantham must now face Lincoln United with a side shorn of two players due to suspension.

“We were disappointed and frustrated not to play last week.” Albans said. “At 1.30 we had everybody at the Meres and our pitch was fine. It would have been good to have had a game to keep our playing momentum going, but we worked everybody hard for an hour and a half.”

The training session went some way to alleviating the lack of match action. Albans and Hallcro felt it was needed to keep everyone focused on the next three points available to Grantham. The Gingerbreads position at the top of the table was not affected by last weeks’ postponement as every game in the division bar one was called off.

“We don’t expect our momentum to be broken by not having the game last week.” Albans commented. “We worked as hard as we would during a game. It I about keeping our mental focus right for the Lincoln game. Nothing changes in terms of team selection for Saturday. Gio is still not fit, while we will be without Sam Purcicoe and Sam Saunders because of their suspensions. We will stick with the same plan for Lincoln as we had for Rainworth. There is no reason for us to change it. We had everyone in again on Tuesday and stretched legs out a bit. Sean Cann reported fully fit which is a bonus to us. The postponements mean everyone will have a smattering of midweek games to play. That could make a difference to some teams, but to us, midweek or Saturday is no different, it is about doing your job well for the whole 90 minutes.”

With just over a third of the season still to go, Albans knows that there is still a lot of work for his side to do this season. If Grantham are to maintain the position they have built for themselves, the Gingerbreads bosses expect their side to have to work at least as hard in the remaining games as they have done so far.

“We have got ourselves into a position of strength this season by doing the right things.” The Grantham joint manager said. “It isn’t something that we didn’t expect. We expected that come this time of year we would be there or thereabouts. Although we hoped to be where we are, looking back on the season so far, we know we could have done better than we have done. Looking at the table at the moment, if we lose a game or two, we could be pulled right back into the mix. It is up to us to go out and ensure that doesn’t happen. We need to be focused on each game as it comes and not get carried away with things.”

The amount of hard work that is put in by the Gingerbreads back room staff drew praise from Albans. Anyone who has watched Grantham train or warm up prior to a game will know just how much of the preparation is done by first team coach Dennis Rhule and goalkeeping coach Mick Hogg. Albans was at pains to point out the impact that the pair have had this season.

“Where we are is down to the hard work of everyone at all levels of the club.” Albans commented. “The input and impact of our backroom staff cannot be underestimated. The work that Dennis and Oggy have put in with the players is the thing that gats us late winners and keeps us in front when needed. Over the last 2 ½ years, all that hard work has come together to put us where we are today. It has been a case of one or two steps forward at a time. We try to learn something from every game and put it into practice in the next one. Denis’ fitness work gets us in the right place not only physically, but mentally as well. Oggy has worked hard with Rob in ensuring he is on top of his game, even when he hasn’t had much to do during the game. We are only getting better at the moment. We have had so few injuries so far and that is another facet of being well prepared both physically and mentally. We work at keeping players in the right condition to go on the pitch and give 100%.”

Grantham and county rivals took a point each away from their meeting at Ashby Avenue and for a while it seemed as though Lincoln United could be challenging Grantham in the play-off positions. However, since a great October earned Terry Fleming the manager of the month award with four wins and two draws in the month, the Whites have only managed five points in their ten games. Albans admitted that he and Hallcro were not aware of the reasons behind the slide at Ashby Avenue.

“We don’t know too much about Lincoln United.” Albans admitted. “Aside from their management team, and a few players they are a bit unknown to us. It is a local derby, so anything can happen. They tried to play football on opening day, but sides like that invariably struggle when the pitches get harder and the weather turns. You have to play the conditions as much as your opponents. We think we are good at doing that and expect to see more of the same at the Meres on Saturday.”