Silkmen finally see a net gain
MACCLESFIELD Town manager John Askey believes his side are finally starting to show what they are capable of after improving their shooting accuracy in recent weeks.
The Silkmen boss had been frustrated with his team’s inability to convert chances during the early stages of the season, but Macc appear to have now turned a corner.
That was evident in the 3-0 win at Wrexham last week, and Askey was pleased with what he saw in that game. We’re playing well at the moment, and we carried that on at Wrexham,” he told the club’s official website.
“I was a bit worried having done so well against Oxford and not getting the win, and then we came in at half time against Wrexham having played so well and not scored.
“I was just hoping it wasn’t déjà vu, so I’m really pleased and the players are enjoying it, as are the supporters and hopefully we can keep that going. It’s difficult to know what to say to the players sometimes, because you may go in at half-time and say ‘keep it going’ and then it all goes pear shaped, so it was a case of encouraging them really.
“The only thing that’s been lacking is our finishing but luckily we put the ball in the back of the net.”
Askey was happy with certain individual displays he saw against Wrexham, and picked out a few of his players for his efforts. It’s difficult to pick out a star man from the win but Danny Whitaker has been doing well,” he said. George Pilkington and John McCombe have hardly conceded a goal over the last few weeks and they just keep getting better as well.
“I think from goalkeeper to centre forward everyone is doing well so it’s all credit to them and hopefully we can keep it going now.”
Macclesfield were set to travel to League One Oxford United in an FA Cup second round replay as the Express went to print on Tuesday, and Askey thought his team were capable of causing an upset. Speaking ahead of the match, he said: “Being at home they will probably be under a bit more pressure, so if we can keep it tight, then the longer it stays at 0-0 the more of an advantage for us.
“I think there will be one or two different players for them. Their captain has come back in – he was suspended for the original game – but it should be pretty much the same for them. We always have a good away support who are very vocal. Even though it’s a Tuesday night, and it’s a reasonable distance, hopefully people will still come and get behind us.”
See our website for a full match report from Tuesday night’s game.