McKimm: Relegation battle will test players’ nerves
Steve McKimm believes both sides will be nervous when Tonbridge host bottom side Welling in a relegation battle. Angels suffered their first defeat in four games last weekend, conceding an injury-time winner in a 4-3 defeat at Hemel. They’re only three points clear of the Wings going into Saturday’s meeting at Longmead, albeit with a game in hand, which takes place at Hampton on Tuesday night. “The next nine are big games because that’s all we’ve got left to try and stay in the position we’re in, or finish higher, and be OK for next year,” said boss McKimm.
“The Welling game is our biggest game because it’s the next one, then Hampton will be our biggest game, then Chelmsford.
“Our next game is always going to be our biggest.
“The boys haven’t been doing too bad. I’d imagine both sides will be nervous on Saturday and we’ll both be going for the win because draws aren’t much use to anybody.
“Long-term they might be but not at the moment because everyone’s winning so you’ve got to get three points to keep up with them or leave them behind. We drew with Braintree and Concord before Hemel and if we’d won one and lost one instead of two draws, we’d be better off.
Teddy Perkins and a James Taylor double saw Angels fight back three times at Hemel - who finished with nine men - only to concede at the death.
It was a cruel way to lose but McKimm was philosophical. “We’ve won two or three in the 90th-plus minute this season and the teams we’ve beaten will reflect on how they’ve let the goal in, like we have after Saturday.
“It was something that could have been avoided, but it wasn’t, and we lost the game. It happens, at all levels. We have to learn from it and hope it not’s too late to learn from it.
“We’ve come back three times but I’ve never had any worries about the character in the team and our determination to fight back because we’ve always had that. We’ve got that fighting spirit and desire.”
Taylor scored two lovely goals, his first since joining on loan from Crystal Palace in January. The midfielder was watched by former Eagles striker Mark Bright, who is the club’s head of under-23s development.
“James has bought into everything we want him to do and brings his own qualities,” said McKimm.
“I’m very pleased with him. I’d like to be talking more about him than answering questions about conceding in the 94th minute.
“He knows what we think of him and I’m hoping Palace feel the same and offer him a new deal when the time comes. “Mark Bright watched him on Saturday, he’ll have told him what was good, what was bad, how to improve.
“I’m sure he gets feedback when he goes in training with Palace and we also give them feedback. “It’s like anything, if you trust someone to look after one of your players, you trust what they have to say about his game and in my opinion he’s done very well.”