Mark Robinson today provided an upbeat bulletin ahead of the important match at Accrington Stanley on Saturday.
Our Head Coach is pleased to welcome Alex Woodyard back into the squad after a two-match suspension and Shane McLoughlin and Paul Kalambayi are both in contention after shaking off groin and ankle injuries respectively.
“Woody is back,” said Robbo. “I’ve spread the captain’s armband around to try to find the right person because I believe you need to have a certain character to be captain of this football club. So Woody is important, he will be back in the frame, and if he is he will be wearing the armband again.
“We had a proper intense session today, including doing what we need to do in the final third. We took a risk with injuries, but that’s where we are right now, and we came through it unscathed, so it’s all good.”
Robbo felt it was the right time to switch training to Plough Lane with Paul Kalambayi very much in the reckoning after shaking off an ankle injury that has kept him out since January.
“We are all together and Paul coming back is very much a part of that,” said Robbo. “Everyone has got a part to play. Part of the reason we came here today was to be back at our home, to show the players why we are all together. We have talked about our purpose, so we had a meeting today and that was one of the reasons – I wanted it to be here. It was to emphasise that we are all in this together. We are all in the same boat: whether you are on loan, have a contract next season, or if you haven’t.”
Asked if Corie Andrews, who scored for our development squad on Tuesday, is an option for the coming matches, Robbo said: “Yes, possibly, and I just wanted him to be a part of it in case he is. He hadn’t travelled with the squad before, so I just wanted him to experience it and be around it. I thought it was important to take him down to Plymouth, even though he was 19th man. As he gets fitter, and we possibly need him, it will not be strange for him. It would have been different from what he had experienced previously. Everyone has got to be ready to be called upon.”
As we announced earlier, Shayon Harrison is back training and he could yet play a part this season, along with on-loan Leicester defender Darnell Johnson.
“Shayon is back running, so it may only be the last two or three games, or the last game,” added Robbo. “He’s a great character to have around. Every time I see him he keeps saying, ‘Robbo, I will be there’. With Darnell, there’s an outside chance (that he will be back before the end of the season), but with the situation we are in the last thing you want to do is bring someone back before they are ready."