Archived News from March 2008
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PREVIEWS: BAP AND DAWSON BACK? / HAMSHAW VIDEO
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7 Mar 2008
Stat of the day: since playing the Stags in November, Rochdale have won 8, drawn 1, lost 1 of their 10 away games. Martin Shaw ------------ Bap relief as injury eases Evening Post, 7 Mar 2008 Alex John-Baptiste tells the Evening Post website: "It's been annoying that it's affected me all season and we've not been able to get to the bottom of it. "But it's a relief that it seems it is being sorted now because there were times when I wondered if that was ever going to happen. "I have been cross country, all over the place, trying to find out what the problem is and have been to see a chiropractor, an osteopath and a specialist, as well as our physio Paul Madin. Full story at Evening Post website here "It was a combination of all their efforts that I have managed to get to this stage and so I would like to thank them all. "It turns out that one of my legs is a centimetre or so shorter than the other, which was causing a problem with the way I walked. "Instead of putting my foot down in one go, I was putting it down in two phases, which was causing the pain in my back. "I have since been to see a guy in Macclesfield and he has fitted me with innersoles for my shoes that I wear all the time and they are really good. "It has been gradually getting better and it is the most pain-free I have been for a long time. "I have to wear them all the time, but I don't mind that if it means I can get back playing." --------------- CHAD VIDEO: Hamshaw - "Get behind us" 6 Mar 2008 STAGS' midfielder Matt Hamshaw has issued a rallying cry to fans ahead of this weekend's crunch clash with Rochdale. Video interview with Chad's Stephen Thirkill here ------------- 'Bap' and Dawson back for Dale clash? CHAD.co.uk, 6 Mar 2008, By Stephen Thirkill INFLUENTIAL centre-back Alex John-Baptiste could be in line for a return to the Stags' squad for Saturday's crucial game at home to Rochdale. Solid John-Baptiste has not figured in the side since the defeat against Chesterfield just before Christmas, but came through 65 minutes of reserve team football against Crewe on Tuesday afternoon. Full story at CHAD website here The defender is now likely to return to the match squad of 16 players if he successfully comes through training today and Friday. Boss Billy Dearden said: "We will have to see how he does at the moment, but there is every chance that he will be in the 16. He came through the Crewe game well and we are just monitoring his progress over today and tomorrow. "I am very pleased to see him back. It has been a very difficult time for the player, no footballer likes being out injured. It is a big ask for him to come straight back into the team. He is a good player and having him back is a boost to the whole team." Stags are expected to welcome back gritty midfielder Stephen Dawson, following an illness, and have no other new injuries to report. ---------------- We are making it hard for ourselves, admits Dearden CHAD.co.uk, 6 Mar 2008, By Stephen Thirkill STAGS boss Billy Dearden says his side must cut out costly defensive mistakes if they are to climb out of relegation trouble. Mansfield dropped two more crucial points against rivals Wrexham on Saturday after defender Chris Wood fell over and conceded a free-kick. Full story at CHAD website here The Welsh side then equalised from the subsequent free-kick with a sloppy strike to reign the Field Mill side back into the League Two drop-zone. Today Dearden told Chad: "We are down at the bottom for a reason, because we have not won enough matches. We have had the chances to get out of the bottom two, but we have lost or drawn home games that we expected to win. "We have let leads slip in our last three games and we need to get into the habit of holding on to leads. I thought we did enough to beat Wrexham and Bury, but we need to cut out the defensive errors and sloppy goals. We are making it very hard for ourselves. "It is close down the bottom at the moment, we have games in hand but we have to win them. The bottom six or seven will be fighting it out until the end of the season." And Dearden expects a tough clash against Rochdale, as Stags look to put an end to their recent win-less streak at Field Mill. "Rochdale are not on good form at the moment, but it is all down to what happens on the day," he said. "They are a good side when they have their best team out and decide to play. "If they have key players out then they will struggle like most teams in this division. When I have seen them this season they have impressed. When I last saw them they beat Chesterfield away very comfortably and looked good. "It is a massive game but I know we are capable of beating them." ------------------------ Listen to the latest edition of CHAD Stags Talk here -------- Mullins: Time to fix leaks Evening Post: Johnny Mullins: "When we took the lead against Wrexham we thought we were in the ascendency - and they got back, from a goal from a free kick that we could have prevented. When you take the lead it is something you want to hold on to but a goal lead is always a fragile lead - you need two goals. The boys up front are giving us the goals and it is up to us to defend that and push up, but I think there are positives that we can build on. The gaffer has been brilliant and keeps us confident and wants us to play football." The gaffer does not just want us to keep turning teams, and when we have the ball we want to get it down and play football. We have the players to do that. We are fully confident we can get out of this. What we have to do now is get four or six points from these two home games." Full interview at Evening Post website here |
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