Positivity has to be turned into points now
IT is not typically in the nature of Town fans to get over-excited. Decades of experience have taught them that even their greatest successes will invariably be followed within a few short years by a chastening smack to the back of the head.
Accordingly, you could forgive any Terrier for hesitating in the face of Danny Cowley’s positivity going into the final nine games of the season.
Talking about the unexpected mid-season hiatus, the Town boss said: “I think we feel that the time has benefited us. We’re feeling really positive off the back of the break. I think it gave us an opportunity to freshen some [players] up mentally, particularly the ones who lived the Premier League second season and then this year as well, so I think it’s been a good time for them, but the group in general really.
“It’s just been the time on the grass. You need continuous time on the grass to keep training their behaviours, keep training their habits and keep rehearsing the game model so you can get a real understanding from the players and then real alignment and then commitment towards it.
“The nature of the Championship, the games come so thick and fast that in-season you never feel you have the time to really embed those principles and that’s what we’ve been able to do during this time, which has been really pleasing.
“We did think our form was improving, particularly postJanuary, but we still were looking for more consistency than what we had and we’re hoping to continue to build on the form that we did start and find a bit more consistency with it.”
That has been echoed by the players themselves, with both Demeaco Duhaney and Tommy Elphick speaking this week of the reinvigorating effect this pause has had on the team spirit around Canalside.
But Town fans will remember that much the same message was put out there by Jan Siewert and his players last summer after they went unbeaten in pre-season, too.
This time it feels different, particularly given that on paper many of the problems Town have struggled with this over the last year were, on paper, fixable with a second chance at having a preseason.
But once bitten, twice shy. We now know not to draw any conclusions based on the mood in the camp until we have seen them put their football where their mouth is. A vital three points against Wigan would be the perfect way to do just that.