Archived News from December 2013
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COX, McGUIRE AND LEE JOHNSON REACTION
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Cup display pleases Cox mansfieldtown.net, 7th December 2013 Manager Paul Cox believes our side can take many positives from their showing in today’s 1-1 draw with Oldham Athletic at Boundary Park. Read more at http://www.mansfieldtown.net/news/article/cup-display-pleases-cox-1221457.aspx?#JKot8yF8Yel1WuT1.99 Korey Smith’s stunning solo effort had put the hosts on course for victory, but Sam Clucas’ 11th equaliser earned us a deserved replay. Speaking during his post-match interview, Cox said: “We came here to get a positive result and today was just that.” “We spoke to the lads throughout the week about being in the hat for the next round and that’s what we’ve done.” He continued: “It was a big task, because we came up against an in-form side, who beat Wolves in the previous round, and have got good players throughout their side. “But what pleased me more than anything, even if we’d have lost the game late on, was there were sprinklings of [spirit in] the side that started the season so well. “Our desire, work-ethic and shape was all excellent. The camaraderie within the boys also seemed there again, and that was prior to us going out on the pitch. “I don’t think anyone can complain that we deserved at least a draw and maybe, with one or two of the chances that we had in the first half, a little bit more.” Our boss also believes our shape and structure was key to earning a replay at One Call Stadium, and a place in the hat for tomorrow’s Third Round draw. He added: “It’s the shape of the side that I’ve been a little bit disappointed with over the past few games, but I thought it was excellent today. “The players, both collectively and individually, worked extremely hard and we played well and deservedly, we’re going home with a draw.” ------------------- Let’s hope for a dream tie, says Stags boss Cox chad.co.uk 07/12/2013 Mansfield Town boss Paul Cox is hoping for a ‘dream tie’ when tomorrow’s FA Cup Third Round draw is made after Stags came away from League One Oldham Athletic with a superb 1-1 draw today. http://www.chad.co.uk/sport/mansfield-town/let-s-hope-for-a-dream-tie-says-stags-boss-cox-1-6302458 The sides will replay at One Call Stadium on Tuesday week and Cox, still remembering last year’s fantastic Third Round home tie with Liverpool, said: “I hope we get a dream tie that will help the players in the replay. “I hope we can draw a massive club. I am really wishing that for our supporters, who I thought were excellent today. “I would love a Man United or a Liverpool to come out of the hat again, something we can get our teeth into in the replay as this tie is not over yet. We know Oldham are are a very good side as they showed when they won at Wolves in the last round.” He added: “All I’ve said to the players all week was come here and make sure you are in the hat for the next round draw. We have done that today. “It was a tough game. But we have come away with a positive result. “They are a form side and no one could argue we didn’t deserve the replay and, with the chances we had in the first half, maybe even a bit more. “Even if we had lost the game late on I would still have been pleased with us today. We showed the building blocks of getting back to the side from early in the season. “Our work ethic and our shape were excellent today as was the camaraderie among the boys. I had a good feeling about the game today beforehand. “A few of the boys today were playing their first game in a while and for the last 15-20 minutes were looking a bit leggy. But they will get sharper and fitter.” On goal hero Sam Clucas who bagged the equaliser with a ferocious free kick, he added: “A lot has been spoken about Sam in the last couple of months. He wins you football matches and we are quite lucky to have him. “How long we can keep hold of I don’t know. I want to keep him here and the chairman wants to keep him. But he will be coveted by a lot of clubs in January.” ------------------- Mansfield Town boss Paul Cox hoping to keep hold of star man Sam Clucas By Nottingham Post MANSFIELD Town boss Paul Cox is bracing himself for January transfer window offers for top scorer Sam Clucas - but hopes the player will stay put. Read more: http://www.nottinghampost.com/Mansfield-Town-boss-Paul-Cox-hoping-hold-star-man/story-20301598-detail/story.html#ixzz2n7LxJwvh The fast-improving 23-year-old was singled out by Oldham boss Lee Johnson as the Stags player to watch ahead of the two sides' FA Cup meeting at Boundary Park. And the former Hereford man showed just why with his 11th goal of the season to earn his side a 1-1 draw against their League One hosts with a thunderous free-kick strike - to set up a replay and a possible third-round tie at Liverpool in the new year. Johnson went on record as saying he believes Clucas is destined to leave the One Call Stadium either in January or next summer. But Cox insists the club will do their best to keep their man and said: "Sam's a good player - and good players are always going to command the attention. "Part of me was annoyed that another manager was talking about an opposition's player in that way because it's something I never do and find disrespectful. "However, it's no secret that he's coveted by a lot of clubs. I'd like to keep him and I think the chairman would. "He's the cornerstone, along with other young players like Clements, Tafazolli and Palmer, who you want to build a squad around. "It wouldn't surprise me if we had bids, but you hope we can work extremely hard because he's a match-winner and puts backsides on seats. "If the club wants to be proactive in building, then you have to keep your better young players who can be instrumental in helping you achieve what you want to achieve." Cox was delighted with Mansfield's overall performance at Boundary Park and was particularly impressed with returning midfielders Adam Murray and Jamie McGuire. He added: "Adam's a warrior and though he tired towards the end, he did very well to get through 70 minutes and made sure Oldham couldn't come straight through us, like has been happening of late. "He's put his foot on the ball and been a calming influence and he'll only get better when he gets more fitness. "Jamie did very well too and it's nice to have that experience back through the spine of the side with those two, John Dempster and Martin Riley." MANSFIELD Town's FA Cup with Budweiser second round replay at home to Oldham on Tuesday, December 17, (7.45pm) will be broadcast live on BT Sport. The winners will be rewarded with an away tie against Premier League Liverpool at Anfield in the third round on Saturday, January 4, 2014. Ticket arrangements for the Oldham replay are as follows: Season ticket holders will be given first priority to purchase tickets from today at noon until Thursday, December 12. Amber Members of the Stags Supporters Association will be given Thursday to purchase tickets. Supporters can buy up to two tickets per season ticket/amber membership card. Remaining tickets will then be available on general sale from Friday morning at 10am. Supporters are reminded that there are no cash turnstiles at One Call Stadium as all spectators must be in possession of a valid ticket before entering the ground. Allocated seating is also in operation. In the event of a win for the Stags against Oldham, season ticket holders will be given first priority to purchase tickets against Liverpool, followed by SSA amber members. Priority will then be given to supporters who have ticket stubs from both the Oldham game and the League Two match at home to Accrington Stanley on Saturday, December 21. ------------------- Hard work pleases McGuire mansfieldtown.net, 8th December 2013 Midfielder Jamie McGuire believes our players’ hard work in training paid off in our 1-1 draw at Oldham Athletic yesterday. Read more at http://www.mansfieldtown.net/news/article/hard-work-pleases-mcguire-1223054.aspx#UABFyDuIKA5tyvTg.99 The Stags fell behind to a stunning solo goal by Korey Smith on 28 minutes, but equalised just before half-time after Sam Clucas’ bullet free-kick found the back of the net. Clucas' leveller ultimately earned us a well-deserved replay, which will take place at One Call Stadium later this month. McGuire, who was returning to the team following suspension, admitted he was at fault for the Latics’ goal but praised our team’s performance overall. “We will take that result all day,” said the 30-year-old. “Following the run we have been on this is a good result. “The lads were great and dug in after we went a goal down. I gave a sloppy pass away, but we responded well following (Sam) Clucas’ free kick. “We did really well and had a few chances ourselves, as well as limiting them to only a couple of opportunities during the second half. I’m really proud of how well the lads have done. “From working on our shape all week, we knew that we needed to keep Korey Smith quiet anyway. We know he likes to get the ball and cause danger. “The whole team did try to do that in the first half, but he has gone on to score a really good goal after a stupid mistake by me, but in the second half, we did our job well.” McGuire added: “We’ve worked hard in training trying to put things right, because we have been making a lot of mistakes in games [recently]. “All week in training, we’ve worked hard cutting these mistakes out and I think we showed that on the pitch.” --------------------- McGuire wants a Liverpool repeat show for Stags chad.co.uk Stags midfielder Jamie McGuire would love to see lightning strike twice and Mansfield pull out Liverpool in the FA Cup third round draw tomorrow. http://www.chad.co.uk/sport/mansfield-town/mcguire-wants-a-liverpool-repeat-show-for-stags-1-6302473 McGuire only joined Mansfield in the summer but has heard plenty about last year’s titanic third round tie from his new team mates. However, he also reminded that Stags still have to see off Oldham Athletic in the Second Round replay after yesterday’s 1-1 draw at Boundary Park. “I am a Liverpool fan so it would be Liverpool for me,” he said. “But that’s for me, it’s for the fans. We have go to win the replay first. On the draw at Oldham, he said: “I will take that all night. The lads were great today and dug in after the Oldham goal and battled away. “Sam took his free kick well and we had a few other chances.” Oldham had gone ahead through skipper Korey Smith’s superb solo goal and McGuire added: “We knew all about him and we worked on shape all week. He did well and dictated things in the first half and scored a good goal which was a stupid mistake from me. But we kept him quieter second half. “We have worked very hard in training all week, knowing we needed to put things right after our run of defeats. “We have done the right things today and the lads worked their socks off.” -------------------- Paul Cox feels the Stags will get stronger By Nottingham Post, December 13, 2013 MANSFIELD TOWN boss Paul Cox believes his team will only get stronger following their resilient display in securing an FA Cup 1-1 draw at Oldham last weekend. Read more: http://www.nottinghampost.com/Mansfield-Town-v-AFC-Wimbledon-Paul-Cox-feels/story-20318030-detail/story.html#ixzz2nLRTqPIb The Stags welcome Athletic to the One Call Stadium on Tuesday night for the televised second round replay, with a juicy tie at Anfield against Liverpool awaiting the winners. Before that though, Cox's men travel to AFC Wimbledon in League Two looking to build on the performance at Boundary Park, when they held their League One opponents. That draw broke a run of four straight defeats in the league amid a run of just one win in 13 games in all competitions. "I think the result was really positive," said Cox. "What we needed was a result that gave us a platform to perform from. I think we've come and got back to the way we started the season which was resolute and hard to beat. "I think we applied ourselves really well and I thought we looked a threat. Good building blocks have come from the day. "I thought as a side we defended excellently from the front, which was how we wanted to. "When you lose a number of games on the bounce as we have and you've lost players through red cards going on in games, sometimes the belief starts draining away from you. "You start doing things that you're not really geared to do. We looked resolute, we looked organised, our shape looked good and we had two or three players who were playing their first games for a number of weeks." Midfielder Jamie McGuire returned for the cup clash following a three-match suspension and while the Liverpool fan will have a dream third round trip to Merseyside in the back of his mind, he is staying focused on helping the Stags get back to winning ways. He said: "The lads were brilliant (at Oldham) and dug in. We'll take that, the run we've been on with no win in six. "We've worked hard in training, that's what we've been doing because we want to put things right because we haven't been doing that and we've been making stupid mistakes in games. "We've worked hard to cut the mistakes out and on the pitch (against Oldham) we did all the right things, battled well and the lads worked their socks off." ------------------ Latics held in cup tie Lee Johnson admitted Latics were well below par as they were held at home by League Two side Mansfield Town in the second round of the FA Cup with Budweiser. "It was flat and reminiscent of a reserve game, and I blame that on our players because we didn’t have any spark in the match apart from Korey Smith with the wonderful goal he scored," explained Latics' manager. Read more at http://www.oldhamathletic.co.uk/fixtures-results/match-report/?matchid=3686926&tcmuri=1218790#oIvBBkqdySrMXOYL.99 Johnson continued: "We are lucky to get out of it, though they (Mansfield) didn’t have any real chances, but we were poor on the day. "I thought we were comfortable as they didn’t have too many shots. The disappointing thing was how flat we were. "We live to fight another day, are still in the hat and the good thing is that I am sure we will go there for the second game and can't be that bad again. "If we turn up like that again on Tuesday (for the Northern Area Semi Final of the Johnstone’s Paint Trophy against Chesterfield) we will get beaten." Johnson added that the absence of James Wesolowski, ruled out through a hamstring strain, was a blow. He continued: "It was disappointing because we missed the spark he gives us and that Gattuso-like aggression that sometimes whips up the crowd. "We are still in the cup and our unbeaten run continues and we can learn from it. We are a young group and it is going to be a spiral and we just dipped on that spiral. Hopefully we will produce a better performance on Tuesday. "I feel bad for the crowd because we have had a good run and I am keen to enhance the reputation of both the club and the players. "I could feel the grumbles and could understand the grumbles. I would have been grumbling as well had I been a fan." ------------------ |
Latest | December 2013