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All to play for

28/11/2007

COUNTY’S assistant boss Peter Ward is looking for his team to put their home woes behind them next week when they have back-to-back League Two games to tackle at Edgeley Park.

The Hatters have lost their last four home league games, while winning two and drawing one of their last three on their travels, but Ward is targeting maximum points from the Edgeley Park clashes against Lincoln on Tuesday [December 4] and Wycombe four days later.

Ward said: "Undoubtedly we’ll be looking for six points from our back-to-back home games. Our home form has been frustrating of late, but our home games are our bread and butter and we do need to get back to winning ways.

"The Lincoln and the Wycombe games are big ones for us, but I’m looking forward to getting the six points."

Ward added: "We’re still looking towards the top seven in the table, but we have had quite a few injuries to contend with lately. We need to be keeping in touch though. Hopefully we can do that, get a few more bodies back, then in the new year we can mount a serious challenge.

"I can understand some of the fans expressing their frustrations, but I can assure them all that nobody has been more frustrated than me, Jim and the players with our recent home form.

"We know we’re more than capable of stringing a few wins together though, everybody is still very positive in the dressing room.

"There is still a lot to play for, we’ll keep plugging away."

Ward admitted that, although extremely disappointed that County are now out of the FA Cup after last Thursday’s penalty shoot-out heartbreaker at Staines, he and some of the players will be glad of a short break as there is now no fixture until Tuesday. However, training will remain as intense as ever over the next six days.

There is still mixed news on the injury front for County.

Rob Clare is still three or four weeks away from full fitness, while Dominic Blizzard still needs another two weeks’ recovery time from a hamstring strain. However, midfielder Gary Dicker resumes training later this week and full-back Paul Tierney has already trained this week.

JIM Gannon was up in front of a four-man FA panel yesterday for a personal hearing which followed a charge of improper conduct issued after County’s game at Brentford on September 29.

That day Gannon was ordered to the stand - along with opposite number Terry Butcher - by referee Kevin Friend.

However, the panel, which did express some sympathy towards the County manager, only found Gannon guilty on a rule technicality.

He was fined £400, but did not receive a touchline ban.