Archived News from October 2020
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BENNING TESTS POSITIVE FOR COVID + CHELT'M PREVIEW
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Thursday 22nd October 2020, 1pm
twitter @mansfieldtownfc First team coach Jamie McGuire has confirmed that defender Mal Benning has tested positive for COVID-19. Benning will now begin a 10-day self-isolation period. twitter Mal Benning @Mal_1993 Thank you for the get well messages, I appreciate the support! Hopefully I’ll be back soon ----------------------- Coach lists required attributes for Cheltenham fixture mansfieldtown.net, Thursday 22nd October 2020 First team coach Jamie McGuire has challenged the Stags to play ‘on the front foot’ against high-flying Cheltenham Town this Saturday. Mansfield will travel to the Jonny-Rocks Stadium to face the Robins, who currently sit third in Sky Bet League Two. Former Stags’ midfielder McGuire says that the amber and blue must put their ‘stamp’ on this weekend’s fixture. “We have to ‘go after’ Cheltenham,” he told iFollow Stags. “There are some very good teams in this league, and Cheltenham is one of them. “I think we have to make it about us and go after Cheltenham. We have to put our own stamp on the game as a team, and hopefully we can do that on Saturday. https://www.mansfieldtown.net/news/2020/october/mcguire-pre-cheltenham/ “We have to be in their faces and on the front foot. We have to take the game to Cheltenham and that’s what the fans want to see. “If we put a passionate performance in, that’s what this town is about. The fans want that and they want to see the team [play] like the town [is], hard-working. “We have to make it [Cheltenham game] about us and make sure we put in a positive performance. We have a lot of energy and we have to bring that on Saturday.” Reflecting on Tuesday’s 1-1 draw with Morecambe, McGuire was impressed with how the Stags reacted to conceding an early goal. “We went out there and conceded a goal in the first few minutes,” he said. “But the lads rolled their sleeves up and after that, we were the better team. “Harry Charsley’s goal (below) was a really good team goal and the build-up was really good. The first-half was a good performance. “We had to dig in as a team in the second-half. We had little half chances - Stephen McLaughlin’s free-kick, the ‘keeper has pulled off a great save. “The mindset of the group is really good. They come in, work hard and we’re getting there. We just need little key moments in games to fall for us.” Earlier today, it was confirmed that defender Mal Benning (below) has tested positive for COVID-19. Commenting on the wing-back’s test result, McGuire added: “Mal’s wellbeing was a bit of a sign [of concern] for us and the doctor - we’ve kept him away from the building and he’s ended up having a COVID test. His test has come back positive. “It’ll be ten days [of self-isolation for Benning]. The doctor and the medical team will take care of that, but Mal has to stay away now. “We kept him away anyway, because of his wellbeing, with the protocols in place at the club. “The biggest thing for Mal now is that he comes back nice and healthy. He’s in good spirits and we wish him all the best.” McGuire also says that the Stags have a clean bill of health from Tuesday night’s match, and also provided an update on midfielder Ollie Clarke, following last week’s news that he is out with a calf injury. “Everyone is fine, there are no knocks or bruises and the lads reported in on Wednesday after the [Morecambe] game. “Ollie [Clarke] is a week-by-week process. He’s with the medical team and they’re dealing with him on that.” iFollow Stags subscribers can watch Jamie McGuire’s interview in full by logging into mansfieldtown.net/ifollow. -------------------- Jamie McGuire wants Mansfield Town to stamp their authority on Cheltenham Town chad.co.uk, By Stephen Thirkill, Thursday 22nd October 2020 Stags travel to the early pace-setters at the weekend as they go in search of their first win of the League Two campaign. The Robins are currently third in the table with five wins from their opening seven matches. But the Mansfield first team coach is keen to see his boys play without fear and stamp their own authority at The Jonny-Rocks Stadium. https://www.chad.co.uk/sport/football/jamie-mcguire-wants-mansfield-town-stamp-their-authority-cheltenham-town-3011933 “They are third in the league and on a good run of results, it could have been us but it's not,” he said. “We have to go in being positive and get after them. We have to try and attack them, get in their faces and make it difficult for them. “Cheltenham are a great team in this league but we have to try and put our own stamp on the game. “We want the first win, doesn't everyone? I've been here before as a player. “We want the result for the club, the fans, for ourselves and to give some relief. “We have to keep working hard and take that bit of quality into the games to get the result. “It will be a tough game, they are a good team who score goals. “They have recruited really well and have a good squad and individuals, it’s not an easy place to go. “We are ready to go and have done our preparation.” McGuire believes his side can take plenty of encouragement from the midweek draw at Morecambe which saw Stags battle back from going behind after just three minutes. “We're getting there now - we just need little things to fall for us,” he said. “We just need the fine lines to go for us now. “We went out on Tuesday and conceded early, but the lads rolled their sleeves up and after that we were the better team." “We want to put a hard-working, passionate performance in on Saturday. That's what the town is all about and we have to do that against Cheltenham." “We're getting there. We haven't won that game yet but we're working hard, grafting and trying to work hard as a team. Ultimately, we have to produce that on a Saturday.” Mansfield will be without defender Mal Benning, who is self isolating after testing positive for COVID-19. ------------------------- Jamie McGuire wants Mansfield Town fans to back the boys chad.co.uk, By Stephen Thirkill, Thursday 22nd October 2020 Jamie McGuire wants Mansfield’s fans to stick with the boys. The Stags players and boss Graham Coughlan have come under fire from sections of frustrated fans as the wait for a first win of the campaign drags on. And McGuire is now appealing for the supporters to keep the faith. “One result cant kick it on,” he said. “We have got to stick together, we are not hiding and we know results need to be better. https://www.chad.co.uk/sport/football/jamie-mcguire-wants-mansfield-town-fans-back-boys-3012559 “We felt after Tuesday that it was a good solid performance. There was a buzz and the players said it was a solid display and we need to kick on. “We are all working to give the boys what they need. We work hard every day and when the boys go out they have to perform. “We are 100 per cent behind them and we need the fans to be behind them as well. “There will be questions, I have seen that as a player at this club - but stick with us, get behind us and hopefully we can get the three points.” Stags face a tough test on Saturday as they travel to a third-placed Cheltenham side, who already have five League Two wins to their name. Defeat for Stags would leave them already 14 points the Robins and see the gap on the play-off pack widen even further. But McGuire says there is no panic at this early stage of the season. “Everyone expects Mansfield to be up there, and rightly so, but there are times in the season when you win seven in a row or lose four on the bounce,” he added. “You will always have a tough spell during a season and we are having ours now. There is no hiding from it. “We can see it and the fans can see it and we are working hard to get our quality. “I have been in teams as a player who were 14 points behind and went on to win the league. It happens. “Are you going to win the league in October? no, but we have three important games on the bounce now and hopefully we can pick up points and kick on.” ----------------------- Striker will miss two weeks, midfielder undergoes scan - Cheltenham Town manager Michael Duff ahead of Mansfield Town at home Robins looking to build on back-to-back wins as Stags visit Jonny-Rocks Stadium By Jon Palmer https://www.gloucestershirelive.co.uk/sport/football/football-news/striker-miss-two-weeks-midfielder-4633406 How are George Lloyd and Elliot Bonds? Lloydy was concussed so he’ll be out for a couple of weeks based on protocol, but he’s fine now. The worry on the night is that one of his pupils had dilated. Bondsy had a scan on Thursday, so until we see the results we won’t be making any predictions. It didn’t look great. He has to have his knee and his ankle scanned so he’s been caught with both. It was a difficult challenge, shall we say. There will be a chance for others and Alfie May will be champing at the bit. It’s an opportunity, we are happy with the squad and unfortunately people get injured, people get suspended and there is an opportunity for two people to come in and grab the shirt. That’s what Lloydy has done and Bondsy has started the last three games. It’s an opportunity for whoever we decide to take it. Could Reuben Reid and Andy Williams be paired together? Yes, all the centre forwards have been told it won’t always be a big one with a little one. Depending on the pitch, the opposition, everything will be factored in and some games it might be two big ones or two smaller ones. Alex (Addai) was the first sub on the other night, so we have good options in that part of the pitch. Was Elliot Bonds just beginning to find his feet at Cheltenham and in League Two? Yes, I thought it was his best game for us in that 35 or 40 minutes he played. It’s difficult when young lads come in because they have to learn the way we play, which is different to their parent club and they want to do well. Sometimes in desperation to do well, they try and do too much, too soon, rather than backing themselves to do what they do. He’d found his feet and settled so hopefully it won’t be too bad and we have him back in soon. He showed why we brought him in on Tuesday before the injury, good physicality, good legs, can see a pass and he runs forward. He had started to find his feet and we were happy with him. How pleasing is it that Cheltenham are comfortable with being in a lead for 85 minutes? I thought we saw the game out well. There were periods in the middle half an hour where we could have gone on and used the ball better and didn’t need to be as rushed to get that next goal, trust in what we do and draw them out a bit more. But we saw the game out well. Ultimately teams are going to come, Scunthorpe did well, banked up, put legs in the team and they had a right go. It’s never that easy to just win. You have to find different ways, tweak things during games and that’s what I was pleased with because again it’s another game Josh hasn’t had a lot to do. His saves were pretty routine so to limit teams to those sort of chances is pleasing. Looking at where Mansfield are, they will want to be hard to beat again won’t they? They are in a false position with the squad they have and the players they have. Against Morecambe on Tuesday they had Jamie Reid, George Bowry and Nicky Maynard on the bench, they’d all walk into most League Two teams. That gives you an idea of the strength they have. They’d had a difficult start with four draws from seven so they are hard to beat, but they’ve fallen the wrong side in a couple of tight games. At the weekend they had chances, but their goalkeeper has made a mistake like Josh did last week and there is not a lot you can do about that. They’ll come here and I imagine try to be hard to beat so we need to try and impact ourselves on them. They changed their shape in personnel the other week and it’s hard to predict anyone’s team at the moment due to the pandemic. I turned up on Tuesday night expecting to see Neil Cox and it was Russ Wilcox. We will be focusing on ourselves and how we can affect the game. Mansfield underachieved last season too. Can that affect a team’s mentality of pressure and expectation to do well? The expectation is that they will be up there at the end of the season, but look at Bolton - it’s not always that easy as being a decent sized club with a good budget. I’m not really interested in what their mentality is and if we can start well and move it around hopefully we get the result we are looking for and we’ll move onto the next one. How are the rest of the squad? Everyone has come through Tuesday okay apart from George and Elliot. Dan Bowry is training with the sports scientist this week to get his fitness up before full training. Finn is going to be assessed and he’s gone into a boot for a couple of days, just as a precaution - he has some swelling around his ankle and Achilles so we need to get rid of that and he should be close. Do you have to take extra precautions because of his age? Ultimately if he’s not fit, he’s not fit, but young players coming out - we had it with Sheafy (Max Sheaf) last year who we took out of the team and he missed six or seven weeks. Sometimes young players aren’t used to their bodies yet and what is a normal pain, one you can get through or one that might need monitoring - it’s all part of his learning and it’s why he’s on loan. He’ll learn lots of things during this loan including how to manage his body, what he can play through and what he can’t. ------------------------ |
Latest | October 2020