Neal Ardley is hoping to see fire in the bellies of our players when we make the trip to AFC Fylde on Tuesday evening.
We head to Mill Farm looking to bounce straight back from a disappointing defeat at Hartlepool on Saturday and will climb to fifth with three points.
And the boss wants a reaction from the boys, something he’s seen on all of our midweek away trips this season with wins following weekend losses on each occasion.
“We want them to say ‘that’s not happening again’,” Ardley stated.
“No one enjoys losing games of football but we were well and truly beaten on Saturday and hopefully that will hurt without denting the confidence.
“The players have been flat, which is natural because they’re disappointed, but they can set their own tone and say it’s not happening again.
“They can’t feel sorry for themselves or mope about. We’ve got to ignite that fire and go out there and play a really intense game.
“The fire is in the bellies and the boys want to put it right.”
Ardley hopes to see the experienced players in the camp show their off-field attributes as we prepare to face the Coasters.
“This is when players like Ben Turner, who’s not in the team due to injury, and Michael Doyle are worth their weight in gold,” explained the boss.
“They have the drive to win and are experienced enough to put defeats behind them and bounce back.
“Hopefully they can influence some of the other players and we just need to make sure everyone is feeling the same way.”
Fylde also come into this one on the back of defeat – a heavy loss against Dover – and are second bottom in the Vanarama National League.
Ardley thinks the table does them a disservice, though, and feels we need to produce an energetic and intense performance at Mill Farm.
“They could be a wounded animal with motivation to bounce back or they could be low on confidence,” he said.
“They were good when we played them earlier in the season and the stats suggest they should be higher in the league than they are so maybe they’ve been unlucky.
“We can only control ourselves, though. My job is to try and make sure the boys turn up with fresh minds and bodies and go out there to deliver a performance with energy and tempo.”
AFC Fylde have announced that, in anticipation of further rainfall, they have applied covers to areas of their pitch and will be assessing the need for an inspection on Tuesday morning. Click here to read more.