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Archived News from September 2007

PREVIEWS AND TEAM NEWS
21st September 2007 21:54


SSA still have coach places available for the trip to Accrington Stanley on Saturday.
Ring the SSA travel hotline on 07967 689597 for more details. More details on the messageboard.

lancashiretelegraph.co.uk
Coleman glad to be back at home
By Gavin Gibbon
Accrington Stanley manager John Coleman is hoping to build on the success of their last home match - a 4-1 win over Grimsby Town - and carry that into tomorrow's match against fellow strugglers Mansfield Town.
Coleman said: "It's a tough game, but there's no easy games in our league.

"Everybody is capable of beating everybody else on their day and we've got to make sure we're at our best.
"We're glad to be back at home again and we're hoping to get back to winning ways."


Wood on stand-by to start
Chris Wood is standing by to make his first League Two start of the season for Mansfield at Accrington Stanley tomorrow. For more details, read here -->
http://www.thisismansfieldtown.co.uk/news/Wood-on-stand-by-to-16111620.aspx


CHAD VIDEO: Paul Holland talks to John Lomas clip here

Leaking Stags must plug Buxton hole
CHAD.co.uk, 20Sep07, By John Lomas
WITH skipper Jake Buxton serving a one match ban, Stags will be hoping Alex John-Baptiste can make a comeback from injury at Accrington Stanley on Saturday (3pm).
John-Baptiste has been struggling to shake off a back strain and Saturday may yet be too soon for him as well.

"It is a blow losing Jake as I thought he was just coming back to looking like he was last season," said assistant boss Paul Holland.
"The lad wants to train but we have got to be careful with the hard ground as it stiffens up straight afterwards. We will leave it as late as possible before making a decision.

John Mullins is likely to move across from right back to partner Martin McIntosh if John-Baptiste misses out.

That would leave the right back slot for youngsters Chris Wood and Ashley Kitchen to dispute.

"Ashley showed what he could do last season," said Holland. "And we would have no qualms about putting Chris in there. He is one of our most consistent performers in training and he wouldn't let you down."

After conceding 19 goals in eight games, Stags head for Accrington in what is highly unlikely to be a 0-0 draw. Then Dagenham and Redbridge come to Field Mill a week later.

"We had two tough games at Accrington last season and we are under no illusion that we will steamroller them," added Holland.

"We have to get the ball down and play and not get involved in a battle, though I know we have to earn the right.

"These are two winnable games. Both sides were in the non-League not so long ago. But we do not expect to go out and walk all over them.

"In our six League games we have scored in all of them. But we have also conceded 14 goals, nine of them from bad mistakes.

"If we could cut that back from nine to just two or three bad goals, our season would look very different.

"You work on it all week but then someone makes a different decision on a Saturday which they think is the right thing to do. You can't hold their hand once they cross that line - you have got to trust them.

"There is very little between the sides in this division. It is such a fine line and we are not a million miles away."

Lee Bell completes his four-game ban at Accrington and he and Buxton will be available again to take on Dagenham the week after.

Carl Muggleton will be fine to play on Saturday after nursing a sore foot this week after the Chesterfield game.


Six points a must says Dawson
CHAD.co.uk, 20Sep07, By John Lomas
STAGS must get maximum points from their next two games against Accrington Stanley and Dagenham and Redbridge to propel themselves away from the bottom three.
That is the view of Irish midfielder Stephen Dawson whose spectacular goal against Chesterfield last weekend counted for nothing after more sloppy goals were conceded at the other end in a 3-1 defeat.

Now Stags head to Accrington tomorrow (Saturday, 3pm) and Dawson said: "We have the players, now we have to go out and get six points from these next two games or we will be in really big trouble.

"Both these games are winnable for us – no excuses. I know they will be a bit of a battle but I feel we must get six out of six points.

"Accrington is a tough ground to go to. But we have nothing to fear.
"We have played some of the top sides recently and if we'd taken our chances at Peterborough we could have won it. Against Chesterfield it was down to more sloppy goals.

"These goals are all down to individual errors. We have to work as a team and know our jobs. If we keep working hard and cut out the sloppy mistakes our luck is bound to turn."

Dawson buried a screaming volley to make it 1-1 against Chesterfield last weekend and is still savouring the moment.

"I have still not seen it again though I have had texts from family and friends," he said.

"It was about time! I think the fans had been waiting about three years for that. But I was bitterly disappointed about the result.

"I have been working on it in training. Paul (Holland) keeps telling me to shoot and hit the target and if put the keeper under pressure, I might just get a goal - and I did."

However, Dawson's goal celebrations at the front of the West Stand earned him a yellow card which seemed very harsh considering the very same punishment was meted out to Spireites' keeper Barry Roche for leaving his box to flatten Michael Boulding. But Dawson had no complaints.

"My family were there and I ran over to them, they were over the moon as well," he said.

"I was over-excited and I shouldn't have gone into the crowd. But I couldn't believe it myself that I had scored!

"The referee said to me afterwards that he had to book me as there was an assessor in the stand and, if he hadn't, he would have got into trouble himself.

"I understand I shouldn't have done it – but it was a local derby and one of the best goals of my career.

"I will probably try it again against Accrington and hit the corner flag this time!"


Leaking Stags must plug hole left by Buxton
CHAD.co.uk, 20Sep07
By John Lomas
WITH skipper Jake Buxton serving a one match ban, Stags will be hoping Alex John-Baptiste can make a comeback from injury at Accrington Stanley on Saturday (3pm).
John-Baptiste has been struggling to shake off a back strain and Saturday may yet be too soon for him as well.

"It is a blow losing Jake as I thought he was just coming back to looking like he was last season," said assistant boss Paul Holland.

"It would be ideal if Alex comes back. He is 50-50 right now.

"The lad wants to train but we have got to be careful with the hard ground as it stiffens up straight afterwards. We will leave it as late as possible before making a decision.

John Mullins is likely to move across from right back to partner Martin McIntosh if John-Baptiste misses out.

That would leave the right back slot for youngsters Chris Wood and Ashley Kitchen to dispute.
"Ashley showed what he could do last season," said Holland. "And we would have no qualms about putting Chris in there. He is one of our most consistent performers in training and he wouldn't let you down."

After conceding 19 goals in eight games, Stags head for Accrington in what is highly unlikely to be a 0-0 draw. Then Dagenham and Redbridge come to Field Mill a week later.

"We had two tough games at Accrington last season and we are under no illusion that we will steamroller them," added Holland.

"We have to get the ball down and play and not get involved in a battle, though I know we have to earn the right.

"These are two winnable games. Both sides were in the non-League not so long ago. But we do not expect to go out and walk all over them.

"In our six League games we have scored in all of them. But we have also conceded 14 goals, nine of them from bad mistakes.

"If we could cut that back from nine to just two or three bad goals, our season would look very different.

"You work on it all week but then someone makes a different decision on a Saturday which they think is the right thing to do. You can't hold their hand once they cross that line - you have got to trust them.

"There is very little between the sides in this division. It is such a fine line and we are not a million miles away."

Lee Bell completes his four-game ban at Accrington and he and Buxton will be available again to take on Dagenham the week after.

Carl Muggleton will be fine to play on Saturday after nursing a sore foot this week after the Chesterfield game.


Time for first clean sheet, orders Billy
CHAD.co.uk, 19Sep07
By Staff Copy
LEAKY Mansfield Town have been warned ahead of Saturday's trip to
Accrington Stanley (3pm) - stop conceding sloppy goals or new players
could be brought in.
Stags, without a clean sheet this season, conceded three more goals in
their 3-1 home local derby defeat by Chesterfield on Saturday which makes
it 19 goals conceded in eight games.

"We need to get a clean sheet from somewhere, we are just giving too many
sloppy goals away," said manager Billy Dearden (pictured below left).
"Maybe we will have to look elsewhere - we will have to see.

"I am not pointing the finger at any one player, you should attack and
defend as a team. But if I do have to bring someone in then it would be a
defender.

"I still think the lads we already have at the club can defend better than
they are doing.

"Every mistake or piece of bad defending is being punished. Sometimes you
can get away with it but that's not happening for us.

"We are going to be without Jake on Saturday. But he would be the first to
admit he is not having the best of times just now. He is skipper and
should be leading by example but knows he is not playing well.

"Martin McIntosh is also not playing well and Gareth Jelleyman is not
having a good time either. That's three senior players you know can do a
lot better."

Disastrously, Stags allowed Chesterfield to score direct from a corner
inside three minutes on Saturday and Dearden said: "The first goal we let
in on Saturday, you wouldn't see an amateur team give goals away like
that.

"It gives the opposition a goal start and an incentive.

"Yes, someone should have been on the near post and, if they have been
dragged off it, then someone else should see that and cover them which
didn't happen. You work on it in training then they don't do it in a game.
Players have to take responsibility.

"We are not closing teams down when we don't have the ball. We are giving
them too much time to put the ball where they want it.

"At the other end Micky Boulding missed two or three good chances.

"And even the Chesterfield supporters thought their keeper should have
been sent off when he brought Mickey down."

He added: "I am not worried about our football - at times in the second
half thought we played quite well.

"And, yes, decisions went against us at times which is part and parcel of
the game and you don't blame anyone.

"But if you are the last man it should be a red card under the rules that
have been made. They had no keeper on the bench so they got away with it.

"I think we did enough in the second half to get something out of the
game."

Both Lee Bell and Jake Buxton will sit it out on Saturday with suspension,
though defender Alex John-Baptiste believes he has a chance of recovering
from his back strain in time.

Dearden said: "Things are going against us a bit right now and we just
have to battle our way out of it.


Coke Tribunal
stagsmad.co.uk, 19th September 2007
The Stags might be in the money early next week, as the tribunal will meet to discuss a fee for Giles Coke.....

The Stags should find out on Monday from a tribunal, just how much compensation they will receive from Giles Coke heading to Northampton during the summer.

Coke has yet to feature for his new side, as he continues his recovery from a Knee injury.

 

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