Men's football news
Written by: Joe
Lewes FC manager Tony Russell has called on the 1,400+ fans who roared the Rooks to victory over Bognor on New Year’s Day to “remain loud” between now and the end of the season.
Lewes sit fifth in the Isthmian Premier League midway through the season and travel to Enfield on Saturday seeking to leapfrog our hosts and potentially move as high as second.
The Rooks beat Bognor 2-0 in front of a bumper crowd on New Year’s Day but then suffered a 4-2 loss at Kingstonian two days later.
And Russell says the players are reacting positively to the atmosphere generated at the Pan.
“With Bognor Regis, we spoke before about a bumper crowd and you guys did not let us down,” says the boss.
“To have 1,400 at the Dripping Pan was unbelievable. It was a great atmosphere and I thought we played our part as well from the playing side. The boys played really well, controlled the game and pushed it forward.
“We created lots of chances, were disappointed to only be 1-0 up at half time, but continued into the second half and finally got that second goal at the end.
“A clean sheet, 2-0 in front of a massive crowd on New Year’s Day – you’d take that all day! It was a good day at the office and one the boys were talking about in the dressing room – the noise and the atmosphere.
“So thank you so much for everyone who came down, we hope to see you again back at the Pan very soon.”
Grab your friends!
Indeed, Russell has a message to the supporters who generated the incredible atmosphere last week.
“Please come back in your numbers, grab your friends, because we’re going to need you for this season run-in, to keep pushing us and making that noise,” he says.
“And for those heading to Enfield I look forward to seeing you all – remain loud and hopefully we can bring back that result for you!”
Indeed, Lewes head to Enfield knowing that Saturday’s hosts are out for revenge, with the Rooks having cruised to a 4-1 victory when the two sides met back in September.
Goals from Bradley Pritchard, Joe Taylor, Taylor Maloney and Killian Colombie earned Lewes three points that day, and came just days after Russell’s troops had been knocked out of the FA Cup first qualifying round to the Met.
Enfield out for ‘revenge’
And Russell is hoping to see another bounce back from defeat when his side arrives at Queen Elizabeth II Stadium.
“We dust ourselves off, we go forward now and we’ve got Enfield next,” says the boss.
“The fixtures haven’t been kind to us, we’ve played five games and four away, it’s been a tough run but we’ll go to Enfield – a tough place to go – they’ve got a very good home record.
“We beat them at the Pan 4-1, it was a very good game. They’ll be looking to get revenge and they’ve got some huge threats, and brilliant players.
“We worked on it in training and we need to make sure we execute our gameplan. We know it’s going to be tricky but we’re in good spirits, and it’s important that we react from the Kingstonian result.
“We can build on the positives. It’s not always about the result – if you put in a good performance you can build off that, and if you keep putting in those good performances then you’ll start winning games of football. That’s how it is.
“There’s loads to be positive about and I’m proud of the players. We’ll be fine.”
Enfield’s Muhammadu Faal is Enfield’s top scorer this season with 21 goals to his name already. It was Faal who bagged the consolation goal when Enfield lost at the Dripping Pan in September, and he scored a hat-trick in the recent 4-0 victory over Potters Bar.
Saturday’s game kicks off at 3pm on Saturday.