Taylor sets Grecians target of getting first goal

WITH six games left in the League Two season, every game is growing in importance for Exeter City, as is scoring the first goal.

Only three times in the league this season have the Grecians come from behind to win, while when scoring first they have only lost twice.

Relegation-threatened Southend United visit St James Park today and manager Matt Taylor has set the players a target to make sure that they score the first goal.

With Phil Brown’s Shrimpers needing to win and fighting for their lives at the bottom of the table, and City’s players running on empty, Taylor emphasised the importance of scoring first.

“The first goal is everything and if the players need a target for the last six games, we have to get the first goal and then get ahead,” Taylor said.

Eighth-placed Grecians are two points off the play-off places, and still have the two sides above them in Newport County and Forest Green Rovers to play, leaving their fate still in their own hands. But, in a tight table, City, if results went against them at the weekend, could drop down to 12th by Saturday evening, and remarkably at this late stage, no side is either safe from relegation or cannot still make the play-offs.

“The table is tight and congested and there are lots of teams who can affect the play-off positions and we know what we are playing for,” Taylor said.

“It is great we are challenging at the right end of the table and we want to be closer than we are, but it is very much all to play for and still in our own hands when you look what is ahead of us.”

Taylor admitted that some of his players were running on empty after the 2-1 loss to Barrow on Tuesday, with both Randell Williams and Matt Jay having been taken off early in the second half as they were lacking full fitness.

Williams, after back-to-back starts on his return from injury, will be assessed as to his fitness and if he can start, while Taylor said there are others in the group who are tired and sore but hopefully will be fit.

One of them is winger Robbie Willmott, who has missed the last two games with a groin injury, but will undergo a fitness test ahead of today’s fixture to see if he can be involved, with Jonny Maxted, after his return from his finger injury, closer to be fit enough to be considered for a start.

The Shrimpers were relegated from League One last season and are staring down the barrel of a second consecutive drop, four points from safety with only five games left.

Brown was appointed manager last week after a run of just one win in 11 – albeit with seven draws – left this facing dropping out of the football league for the first time since 1920, and he began with his reign with a goalless draw at home to Crawley Town.

City boss Taylor admits that he doesn’t know for sure what kind of opposition he’ll be facing.

He said: They have changed the manager in the last 10 days and now had a full week to prepare on the training ground and it’s a difficult one to prepare for as you don’t quite know who is available, who suits his plans, what system they’ll play in that group of players.

“But we have to take care of ourselves.”