Rams’ luck out
RAMSBOTTOM United manager Mark Fell believes that his team’s recent bad luck will turn after a late equaliser by Skelmersdale extended their disappointing run.
Having led 1-0 at halftime, the Rams conceded from a corner in the fourth minute of stoppage time after having been forced to play midfielder Dean Stott in goal following an injury to Charlie Albinson.
Fell said: “We went in 1-0 and it could have been five. We were disappointed but that’s been the story of our season – we’re dominating games and creating hatfuls of chances but we’re still giving teams something to hang on to.
“It was a bit of a kick in the teeth. We’re guilty of not taking our chances and killing teams off. Football does that and it can bite you.”
The draw means that Ramsbottom now sit 16th in the Evo-Stik North table with just one win from their last 11 league games, but Fell feels that recent results have “absolutely not reflected our performances”.
He said: “People coming to games regularly over the last couple of months know that’s how it’s been, we’ve been dominating games.
“All the bad luck we could have got we’ve had in two months. It’s painful from a managerial perspective.”
Fell cited the 1-0 away defeat to Droylsden in December as a particular example of his side’s poor fortune: “We created 22 chances and couldn’t score, they had two shots and scored. That’s how it’s been for us.”
Ramsbottom’s difficult run had led to chairman Harry Williams issuing a statement last week supporting Fell and his coaching staff and dismissing “rumours and innuendo” regarding the manager’s position at the Riverside Stadium.
Fell told Rossendale Free Press that he feels much of the speculation has come from outside the club, including from other managers hoping to take over if he were to leave.
“People are calling it a vote of confidence but it wasn’t.
“It was the club saying ‘we’re not playing games with these people’. We know we’re OK. We will be fine.”
Fell also spoke of his “great relationship” with the chairman: “He’s a challenging chairman and he wants the best for his football club and I’m confident that I can deliver that for him.”
Ramsbottom are away to Colne on Saturday.
‘All the bad luck we could have got we’ve had in two months’