Archived News from July 2002
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INTERVIEW WITH CRAIG DISLEY
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INTERVIEW WITH CRAIG DISLEY
Craig Disley - Mansfield Town http://www.givemefootball.com (PFA website), 31 July 2002 A year ago Craig Disley was a rookie 19-year-old on the fringes of a Mansfield Town squad that was preparing for another season in the Third Division. A year on, and with his 21st birthday looming, the highly-rated midfielder is reflecting on a season of high achievement at Field Mill, which ended with automatic promotion. Disley himself played a full role in the Stags' success, scoring seven goals and attracting interest from several Premiership clubs. Givemefootball's Nadia Chalfin caught up with Mansfield's midfield prodigy and asked what he and his team-mates are hoping for in the season ahead. Q: HOW IS PRE-SEASON TRAINING GOING SO FAR? A: Very well actually, although it's been hard work, and I've been pretty stiff for the past few weeks, but we've played a few games now and are getting our match fitness back, and feeling very good at the minute. Q: HOW DO YOU THINK THAT YOU ARE GOING TO FARE IN THE SECOND DIVISION? A: Yeah, I think that we're going to be okay, we've been on a bit of a downer because we've lost a few players, but we've bought a few new players in, and I'm very confident that we will do very well. Q: IT MUST HAVE BEEN A SHOCK WHEN BILLY DEARDEN LEFT THE CLUB SO SUDDENLY, WHAT WAS THE REACTION OF THE PLAYERS? A: It happened after the game against Leicester in the FA cup, and it was a bolt out of the blue, so we were very shocked, but when we found out that the manager that was going to be appointed was from within the club, we were all very happy with that. Q: HOW DIFFICULT WAS IT TO KEEP FOCUSED, AND HOW MUCH CREDIT GOES TO STEWART WATKISS? A: A lot of the credit has to go to him, it is his first managerial position and to get us promoted in his first job is a great achievement. On the whole we were all happy that the appointment came from within and it didn't really unsettle us too much. Q: YOU'VE SOLD YOUR STAR STRIKER, CHRIS GREENACRE, TO STOKE, HOW DO YOU THINK THAT YOU WILL PERFORM WITHOUT HIM, IS IT A BIG LOSS? A: It's a massive loss because he scored about 40 goals in 100 or so games, but once we get someone to replace Chris I'm sure that they will do a similar job for us. Q: IS THERE ANOTHER STRIKER THAT CAN FILL HIS SHOES? A: Yeah, there are a few at the club that could do a good job for us, but I still think that they will be looking for another couple of players, I'm sure that we will be fine and get someone to do his job. Q: YOU MUST BE AWARE THAT THERE HAS BEEN INTEREST IN YOU FROM PREMIERSHIP CLUBS, DID THAT GIVE YOUR GAME A BOOST? A: Obviously you like to play as hard as hard as you can, but I don't really listen to speculation and it's not for me to decide, until someone tells me otherwise, and I am very happy at Mansfield Town. Q: HOW DO YOU SEE YOUR FUTURE GOING? A: This season getting my head down and working hard in order to get a regular team place, do well for Mansfield Town and see what happens from there. Q: SCOTT SELLARS HAS JUST JOINED AND ALLEN TANKARD JOINED YOU LAST SEASON - BOTH ARE VERY EXPERIENCED PLAYERS, IS THAT WHAT WATKISS IS LOOKING FOR? A: Definitely, we do need a bit of experience as we are such a young side, in fact we were the youngest team in the Third Division last season. So to have such experienced players like Allen and Scott is very valuable to the squad, because we need them to talk to us and lead us sometimes. Q: A LOT OF THE PLAYERS HAVE COME UP THROUGH THE YOUTH TEAM, AS YOU YOURSELF HAVE DONE, THIS MUST BE VERY REWARDING FOR THE CLUB? A: It is, and it just shows what a great youth policy we have got going on in the club, we've got youth players now that are sniffing at the first team. It's great for us all as we've played together as youth team, reserves and now first team, so we are all good mates, and it's great for the club and great for the town. |
Latest | July 2002