Hucknall boss proud of response ahead of big FA Cup tie
Tris Whitman was delighted with his side’s response as they overcame Gresley Rovers 3-1 on Wednesday night.
The Yellows had been beaten 3-2 at Newark Town on Saturday but the match with Gresley saw them open up a three-goal lead thanks to Niall Towle, Lewis Belgrave and Brad Wells before Rovers pulled one back.
And ahead of an exciting FA Cup preliminary round challenge at neighbours Basford United upcoming this weekend, Whitman was thrilled to go into that match with a win behind them.
He said: “We bounced back from Saturday’s disappointing defeat with another excellent midweek performance. Similar to the Belper game, we dominated possession and were able to create a number of good chances which saw us go three goals up early in the second half.
"Gresley got one back but I felt we quickly regained momentum and could have added to the scoreline. I felt the tempo both in and out of possession was excellent and it is something we will need to take into Saturday's game away at Basford.
"Now it will be a case of consistency as we aim to put back-to-back wins together for the first time this season.”
Last weekend the Yellows fell just short in their fightback from 3-0 down at Newark Town but gave the home side a nervous finish at 3-2 with two late replies from Belgrave and Calrick Dunkley.
Whitman said: “Saturday was a tough test against a well organised side.
“I felt on the whole we were competitive and probably shaded it in terms of possession and chances, but one thing that is becoming a concern is our inability to defend set pieces.
“This is something that was apparent at the back end of last season and has continued through pre-season into the start of this season, although this is something we are still currently working on.
“We went in at the break one goal down but we were relatively happy due to playing against a strong wind.
“The second-half was a little frustrating as we looked to get back into the game and we showed some good moments before Newark scored two goals to put the game out of reach.
“A late fightback after Brad Lathall was sinned-binned made the scoreline look respectable but sadly we ran out of time to find an equaliser.”