Wrens look to continue winning trend

RAINWORTH MW will go into Saturday’s and Tuesday’s home Evo-Stik NPL Division One South matches looking to double their winning run to four matches.

The Wrens achieved back to back wins for the first time since the opening two games of the season when they followed up a midweek 2-1 home win against Leek Town with a thumping 4-0 victory at Brigg on Saturday, giving manager Kevin Gee, his players, and the travelling fans plenty to smile about
But Gee has insisted that the Wrens’ players and supporters need to keep their feet on the ground and not be carried away by the new-found success as they entertain Lincoln United on Saturday and then Goole on Tuesday night.

Gee, who has still only been in post for a fortnight, said he felt the side had just carried on at Brigg from where they left off against Leek.

He said: “We asked for a reaction to that game, and the lads responded brilliantly, and although I’ll stress again that we take small steps in our quest to stay in this division, it’s nice that everyone is walking about now with a smile on their face.”

But he also cautioned: “It would be easy after two successive wins to get carried away, but we need to keep our feet on the ground and stress that that is all we have done.

“We are not going to win every game, and there is still a lot of work to be done in our remaining 23 league matches. But we have worked hard in the three we’ve had together so far, the players have tried to do what they have been asked to do, and we are starting to see the benefits.”

The upturn in Rainworth’s performance level and results could not have come at a better time, as other clubs at the bottom end of the table have also started to string a few results together.

Indeed, having climbed from the bottom of the table to 18th, they could only watch on Tuesday night as most of their rivals won to drop them back to 20th, just one spot above the relegation zone.

But Gee and assistant Lee Wilkinson are philosophical about this trend, which has closed the gap on clubs above and pulled several more sides into the scrap to avoid the drop.
Gee added: “The only people that Lee and I can affect are those in our own group. We have to remain focused because this is a tough league to play in, wherever you are in the table. If your preparations fall short you miss out so it’s important that everyone puts in a good shift, keeps their concentration, and does the job they are given to do.”

Lincoln, rated by Gee as ‘promotion material on their day’, will arrive at Kirklington Road looking to put a blip in form behind them.

After the Wrens had secured a goalless draw at Ashby Avenue in September, United manager Terry Fleming landed the Division One South Manager of the Month award for October, then fell victim to the traditional curse of such awards as his side then underwent what is for them a typical below-par November, culminating in a shock home defeat by lowly Shepshed Dynamo at the weekend.

On Tuesday it will be an inconsistent Goole side who will provide the opposition, when the Wrens will remember one of their worst performances of the season at the Victoria Pleasure Grounds, also in September, when they lost 2-1 and the only highlight from their point of view was a wonder goal by substitute Jamie Goodacre.