Hatters warned over the run-in
COUNTY boss Simon Rusk warned his players that there will be no straight-forward fixtures in the National League run-in, after his Hatters side cemented their spot in the top seven with a 0-3 win at play-off chasing Wrexham on Saturday.
Rusk’s men made it eight unbeaten via an Alex Reid double and a John Rooney penalty at the Racecourse, with both men scoring against their former club as County kept the pressure on the National League’s top three.
Following what Rusk admitted was a “slow start” in North Wales, The Hatters took the lead with Reid’s first-half brace, before Rooney capped the win midway through the second half – and the former Brighton U23’s boss hailed his side’s “quality” on the day.
“It was a really tough game,” he said.
“I thought we probably didn’t start well as we would have wanted, we were slow out of the traps. Having said that, we still defended key moments really well within that opening ten minutes, and in the end, I think we showed our quality.”
Both of Reid’s strikes were teed up by Harry Cardwell, Reid’s strike partner on the day. Chorley loanee Cardwell bundled two through balls into the path of Reid to set up two poacher’s finishes for the forward, leaving Rusk to hail his frontline at the Racecourse.
Reid’s two goals were his 16th and 17th of a stellar debut season for County, with the former Fylde man reportedly poised to pen a new contract at Edgeley Park – with his current deal set to expire this summer.
“Wrexham are a side chasing the play-offs, they’re at home, they’re going to make a fast start,” he said. “The moves for our goals were effective and well-executed, and they were two really important goals at a really important stage of the game.
“We’ve got those relationships all over the pitch, and for me it’s not so much about building those relationships between specific players, but the whole group understanding what we want to do and implementing that, regardless of who’s in and who’s out of the side on any given matchday.
“If people come in and come out, which will happen when we’ve got to look after people with the sheer volume of games being played, it’s important that they have that understanding.
“It’s positive that Harry and Alex were able to click, and that paid off for us on the day.”
Reid and Cardwell’s partnership up top meant a deeper role for marquee signing Paddy Madden, who was deployed as a number ten on the day.
The 31-year-old regularly dropped deep to win possession and often started counter-attacks for The Hatters, with Rusk praising the versatility of the former Fleetwood Town striker.
“Paddy’s got his experience and got his quality, and that came out at times,” said Rusk. “It’s not so much about limiting players to one aspect of the game, there’s room for interchange there. I think at times Paddy showed his quality.”
A dominant first-half from The Hatters had fans reminiscing about last season’s memorable 1-2 win at the Racecourse, in which the Dragons reduced the arrears late in the second half to set up a nervy finish.
But Rusk hailed his side’s “game management” on Saturday, as The Hatters snuffed out any threat from the hosts before Rooney’s spot-kick sealed the win.
“You have to remind yourself that while, of course, you’d rather be 2-0 up than 0-0 in a game, that scoreline can change quite quickly and nerves can creep in,” he said.
“So it’s a dangerous scoreline in that respect, but we managed it really well.
“I actually think there were moments in the game where the lads would have wanted to be better. I thought some of our interplay in the 0-0 draw with Bromley last week was excellent, but you just don’t get the goal on the day. Tactically it was a really different kind of game on Saturday. Wrexham had to come out at us, and we’ve managed to punish them.”