Archived News from August 2016
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MURRAY REACTION TO MICKLEOVER GAME
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Stags unscathed after Mickleover friendly mansfieldtown.net, 26th July 2016 Manager Adam Murray was pleased to report a clean bill of health from the select XI which faced Mickleover Sports this evening. First team players Mal Benning and Jack Thomas have missed previous friendlies because of injury concerns, although they are not believed to be serious. And the Stags’ chief noted his satisfaction in seeing a number of his players increase their match sharpness at this evening's contest in Derbyshire. “It was a very competitive game, I enjoyed it,” said Murray, who fielded a blend of youth and first team players in the match which ended in a 1-0 defeat. Read more at http://www.mansfieldtown.net/news/article/2016-17/stags-unscathed-after-mickelover-friendly-3208961.aspx#daLtMvfgzmWg63Rw.99 “There was a bit of an edge to it, some good play, some points to work on. It was a good to get the mix - it was 50-50 with kids and (first team) boys who we needed to get the minute bank up. So overall, I was pleased with the workout. We managed to get 90 minutes in some people’s legs and we’ve come out of it with no injuries, so that’s the main thing.” Murray said the match would be a ‘big learning curve’ for his younger players, four of whom completed the Stags' defensive line-up. “It goes to show that the gap from under 18 football even to, with all due respect men’s football at Mickleover’s level, is huge. “The intensity and the power and the purpose in the game is a totally different level, so it’s an eye-opener for them. “We had a very young back four today and at times that showed, but it’s a great learning experience for them and they won’t get better unless we put them in situations where they’re stressed and where they make mistakes. “For them, it will be a big learning curve but overall it was the minutes in the bank that we wanted.” At the half-time interval, first team coach Karl Hawley entered the fray and the Stags’ chief hinted that whilst Karl is not in his immediate first team plans, he could be a useful option in the 2016-17 League Two campaign. "He’s a good player. I think he showed that today. His experience and his ability to communicate on the pitch are tools that we have in the toolbox if needs be and [in order] to have that tool available to us we have to keep Karl ticking over in terms of his own fitness. "Like I said a few weeks ago: Is he in the forefront of my mind to be on the pitch? No. But he’s a great option to have. "I’ve spoken to a few people who keep telling me I’ve got to register him because he could be a big weapon to have at this level and I don’t disagree with that. He showed some touches today and his ability to bring other people into the game and to get into dangerous areas [was impressive]. "With a small squad we need as many options as we can," he added. The manager's interview can be viewed tomorrow (Wednesday) on Stags PlayerHD ------------------ Stags boss Murray pleased with young defence’s test at Mickleover chad.co.uk, by John Lomas, Tuesday 26 July 2016 Mansfield Town boss Adam Murray was delighted to test out a very youthful Stags back four in tonight’s 1-0 defeat at Mickleover Sports. With a small squad and no loan windows, Murray knows it is vital he has as many options available to him as possible. So at Evo-Stik NPL Premier Division Mickleover, he threw together Teddy Bloor, Corbin Shires, Keiran Harrison and Louis Danquah and watched them at full stretch against a very good Sports side. “It was a very competitive game and I enjoyed it,” said Murray. http://www.chad.co.uk/sport/mansfield-town/mansfield-town-news/stags-boss-murray-plesaed-with-young-defence-s-test-at-mickleover-1-8035535? “I thought it had a bit of an edge to it and there was some good play and some points to work on. “It was good to get the mix - it was 50/50 kids and some of our boys who needed to get the minutes bank up. “Overall I was pleased with the work-out and to get 90 minutes into some people’s legs. And we came out of it with no injuries which was the main thing.” He added: “For the kids it will be a big learning curve. “It goes to show that the gap from U18 football to, with due respect, men’s football at Mickleover’s level is huge. “The intensity, the power and the purpose in the game is a totally different level. So it’s an eye-opener for them. “We went with a very young back four today and I think at times that showed, But it was a great learning experience for them. “They are not going to get any better unless we put them into situations where they are stressed and where they make mistakes. “We learned nothing we weren’t really aware of tonight as this step is huge. “That’s why I am a big believer if you can get the kids out on loan at 16/17 into this kind of football, you won’t get a better learning curve than that. “The intensity of the game is a lot higher than playing youth team football. For our kids to develop and go to the next level they need to be playing against men. “Tonight there were some big areas that they can see themselves they need to work and improve on - and they will. “The biggest thing today was getting that 90 minutes into people’s legs. The most pleasing thing was the intensity of the game. “We worked hard. We went and pressed. They are a decent side Mickleover, so, on a very tricky pitch, it was a good outing. “I’ve got some real positives out of the last two games and we now move on to the final bit before we go to Newport and we’re feeling very positive.” ------------------- Hawley to stay fit as Stags’ secret weapon chad.co.uk, by John Lomas Mansfield Town first team coach Karl Hawley will keep his fitness topped up in case his goalscoring experience is needed in the first team. Stags boss Adam Murray confirmed he will get Hawley registered for the forthcoming season after a lively second half showing from Hawley in last night’s 1-0 friendly defeat at Mickleover Sports. Hawley twice forced saves from home keeper Lewis King and Murray said: “He is a good player. I think he showed that today - his experience and his ability to communicate on the pitch. http://www.chad.co.uk/sport/mansfield-town/mansfield-town-news/hawley-to-stay-fit-as-stags-secret-weapon-1-8035549 “It is a tool we have got in the tool box if need be. For us have that tool available to us we have got to keep Karl ticking over in terms of his own fitness. “Like I said a few weeks ago - is he in the forefront of my mind to be on the pitch? No. “But he is a great option to have. I’ve spoken to quite a few people and they keep telling me I have got to register him because he could be a weapon at this level and I don’t disagree with that. “I think he showed some touches today to bring other people into the game and get into dangerous areas. “And it’s just his aura on everybody else. You’ve seen today that people grow about him.” Murray said he would keep Hawley fit with some outings in the new U21 side being introduced at the club this season. “So it’s an option and with a small squad we need as many options as we can,” he said. “These games are there for a purpose and whether it’s getting young kids through to play at a higher level - and you’ve seen tonight the difference between U18 and men’s football - or a case of keeping the older boys ticking over we’ll use it for all of that.” ----------------- Mansfield Town prepare for final week of pre-season action chad.co.uk Mansfield Town begin their final week of pre-season action when they travel to Worksop Town tomorrow. Stags have enjoyed a succesful pre-season despite defeat at Mickleover Sports in their last outing. Adam Murray’s side will then wrap-up their pre-season campaign on Monday when they travel to Hednesford Town. Murray could send a full first team to Worksop Town and as close to the starting XI as he can get right now, though he stresses places are still up for grabs. What have we learned about Mansfield Town in pre-season? Murray is also unsure which side he will send to face Hednesford on Monday. “It’s a question I can’t give you an honest answer to at the moment,” he said. http://www.chad.co.uk/news/mansfield-town-prepare-for-final-week-of-pre-season-action-1-8040116 “When you go into the last week of the season we won’t risk anything. But at the same time we need to keep people’s minute banks up. “The first month is very hectic and I need everyone at full pelt, so we will look at it. “We have certain people like Mal Benning and Pat Hoban who need to catch minutes up, we if we think they need games, we’ll get them in the mix.” -------------------- |
Latest | August 2016