Interim head coach Matt Lawlor spoke to the media after guiding Fleetwood Town to their first win of the season against Tranmere Rovers on Tuesday night.
The long-awaited first three points have finally arrived on the Fylde Coast, with Lawlor at the wheel, as goals from Jayden Stockley and Phoenix Patterson meant Town would head into a decent-sized break now on the back of a much-needed win.
Here’s what Matt had to say after the game:
On the game and the call-up…
“We set out yesterday when I got the phone call to take the team on an interim basis, to go out and get the win, we needed to win, didn’t we? I guess it’s now mission accomplished, and I thought we played well as well on top of that.
“Job done, the lads have got a win now so it’s a good start now for whoever comes to take the baton and have a good season. We’ve got 40 games left in the league; a massive chunk of the season is still there.
“After being at this club for so long and being a local boy to the Fylde Coast area, I understand this club and how they want to play. It’s been a whirlwind; I’ve never been so popular on social media or by texts, but I’ve had loads of support.”
On the pathways available at Fleetwood…
“I think I’ve done every job here! First of all, I took the Under-14s to 16s, then the 18s, then the 21s where I am now. I’ve been here a long time so I know that this club is unbelievable at giving pathways, I can’t stress that enough.
“Within the Academy, to attract players over giants around the corner like Preston, Burnley, Blackburn etc. is difficult due to the size of the club but, the pathway that we can offer for players and staff alike is brilliant.
“It’s not just me, Simon Wiles, Stephen Crainey, and more have proved that this is a special place to work and, as cheesy or corny as it sounds, it is because we’ve got good people here that get afforded opportunities.”
On his feelings towards the quality of the squad…
“It’s easy for a manager to come in after six defeats and say just go and be free to the players, but we had a good meeting the other day which was honest and open, and I shared my thoughts on the group.
“Just let the players play; I think we’ve got a good group, which is credit to the recruitment team and the former regime, unfortunate things have happened since bringing them together, but I just told them I wanted them to be the players they were bought for.
“We’ve had Fin Armstrong making his debut today and he was only supposed to get a half-game, but Monty [Adam Montgomery] got an injury, and I thought he didn’t look out of place at all throughout the game.”
You can watch the full interview live on iFollow HERE!