Assistant manager assesses position
Fleetwood Town reached the half-way point of their League Two campaign with the convincing win over Accrington Stanley on New Year’s Day. A ten-day gap until away Dagenham and Redbridge away allows for a moment to reflect on progress so far and assistant manager, Chris Lucketti, has shared his thoughts.
The 2013-14 campaign so far has been marked by a very close grouping of teams near the top of the table:
‘No one predicted that it would be so tight,’ said Lucketti. ‘You might have seen four or five teams competing with each other but there are nine or ten capable of mounting a successful run. We are seeing teams putting good results together then dropping points unexpectedly. We are right up there. Our new signings have settled in really well. Graham and I have been delighted with the impact that they have made.’
‘Everything was going smoothly then Jamille and Bally suffered bad injuries within days of each other. Losing our top scorers in that way was a massive blow but Bally’s back now and Jamille’s close. I also thought that Jon Parkin had his best game in my time here on Wednesday against Accrington and showed what a force he can be on his day.’
Former defender Lucketti reserved special praise for centre-back Nathan Pond, Town’s longest serving player:
‘Pondy has been a revelation. He’s a proper bloke and a leader, one of the best professionals I’ve seen and, believe me, I’ve seen a lot. He just goes about his business and isn’t affected by all the publicity he’s been getting.’
Alan Goodall made his first appearance of the season on New Year’s Day and is another player who Lucketti describes as a great pro:
‘Alan’s been first-class since Graham and I came to the club but unlucky not to get opportunities before now. He reads the game well and can do a job in the role we gave him on Wednesday. Hopefully, it can be one that will extend his career.’
Some of Town’s most convincing performances have been against League One sides in the Johnstone Paints Trophy:
‘We’ve got a great two-leg northern final against Chesterfield to look forward to. They will be brilliant occasions for the club and I can’t wait! The lads deserve to be where they are in the competition. They’ve had the right mentality against the higher division sides and know they’ve had to be on their game to compete.’
The management team will be making the most of the longer break:
‘We’ll be catching up on Dagenham and Redbridge’s game at York. It’s a good opportunity to assess our next opponents. As for the lads, we’ll be able to top up fitness work in training and allow one or two tweaks and twinges to recover.’
Lucketti is clearly enjoying his role so far:
‘Yes, I love every minute. I have to say that playing is a lot easier because, in management, you just don’t know what’s coming week to week. Every day is different. We’ve a lot yet to play for in the second half of the season and I’m really looking forward to it.’
Dagenham & R 11/01/2013 7am £25.00 £12.50