Striker speaks ahead of Southend United match
Since arriving at Highbury Stadium on his loan spell from Preston North End, Iain Hume knew there was a lot of character around the Fleetwood Town dressing room, but the recent Easter weekend assured that thought.
The Canadian striker has played a pivotal role in Town’s recent upturn in results that have seen the Cod Army close the gap on the Sky Bet League 2 automatic promotion places to just three points with two games remaining.
A perfect Easter weekend has played a huge part in that as Graham Alexander’s side overcame two potentially tricky hurdles to claim maximum points.
The first at the Abbey Business Stadium as Fleetwood fought back in the second half to claim a 2-1 victory over Cheltenham Town. The second a 1-0 win over Wycombe Wanderers despite battling out nearly the entire contest with ten men.
Hume knew that fighting spirit was there and he believes those two results have answered a lot of their critics.
The 30-year-old said: “Since I have been here, Friday and Monday showed me the character that this side has got.
“They were both horrible games for different reasons. Friday in the first half, we were poor, but come the second half – the way we approached it – there was only going to be one team that won it.
“We thoroughly deserved that three points and then on to Monday. The hurdle of Goody (Alan Goodall) getting sent off made the game really hard for us.
If you look at the stats, though and the way the team played and we thoroughly deserved the three points.
“We controlled it from the moment Goody went off to the end.
“It (fighting spirit) might have been one of the thing people questioned, on paper, it’s a really good squad for this division, but you question they dropped a couple of points here and a couple of points there.
“I think we answered that. The Exeter game aside, which was a no show unfortunately, but since then there hasn’t been a game that we didn’t deserve to win.
“Even the game we drew against Rochdale and Morecambe, they were two games we should have won, and I think we have worked as hard as possibly can to get everything out of the games.
“We have got two games left and there’s no reason why the same attitude and endeavour from the lads isn’t going to be the same.”
In the opposition dugout this weekend will be a face that Hume will recognise as Southend United prepare to make the long journey to Highbury for the penultimate fixture of the season.
Phil Brown managed Hume during his time as Preston North End manager back in 2011 and whilst Hume admits he enjoyed his time under his one time coach, he is no mood to offer any favours as he looks to fire Fleetwood into a potential dramatic end of season finale at Chesterfield next weekend.
“I played for Phil (Brown) for around eight or nine months and unfortunately things were against him from day one, but I enjoyed it.
“I got along really well with him and I haven’t got a bad way to say about him. He’s doing alright with Southend now, but we are going to go out and try and steamroll them and do what we can to get the three points.”
Hume is at 7/1 to score the first goal this weekend against United or 14/1 to grab his first brace of the season. Full betting odds for the game can be found by clicking the link below
Fleetwood Town v Southend United