The new look team are likely to arrive at the Sincil Bank in new purple colours and set to form eleven debutants against the Imps, who are likely to give a debut to last seasons loanee Matt Sparrow, I'm doubting he's going to come back to haunt us.
With the new season, comes new expectations, which has been set very high from everyone in and around the club, with the goal being promotion at first attempt. Gary Johnson really implemented his ideas from the day which project promotion came about, and that was he wanted character as well as ability - obviously. Now with this statement he could of meant a number of things, positivity, desire, determination, work-rate to name a few, and he probably meant all of them characteristics mentioned. With the players he's brought in I think he's got this approach etched into all of the minds of his players as well as his philosophy, maybe not JJ Hooper (the less said the better). First and foremost he wants them to buy into the type of football he believes in, and that is his main goal.
Now with creating a promotion winning team, you need your key players, the ones who will pick the team up when a match might not be going our way, and when the benchmark needs to be set a little higher if we're going to get that vital win, or that 2 points a game target. Below I have put my opinion on who I think will be the three most influential players in our promotion push.
Captain Fantastic?
It goes without saying as a captain you have to be the biggest character out there, and have one of the biggest influences on the game as you're the leader of the team. Aaron Downes may not have had the most glowing report out of the whole squad from pre-season, but he was touted to be given the captains arm band from the moment he signed, as well as being the first signing this season. An array of experience the Aussie knows what the league is about, and he knows what to expect, with his age he might not be the quickest out of the blocks, but he'll be there to get the Robins out of any trouble along with any of the defensive line, and he'll keep it in shape and organised. Along with keeping it organised, he'll be a massive helping hand for George Mclennan on the left hand side and other younger members of the squad, he would have no doubt pre-warned many of his team-mates what to expect in one of the toughest leagues to get out of. Is he Cheltenham's answer to the departure of the likes of Alan Bennett or Steve Elliott, fingers crossed.
The organiser
Vice-captain Kyle Storer is another with plenty experience of the National League, the ex Kidderminster midfielder has slotted comfortably to the holding role within the diamond set up, and has caught the eye of a fair few. Second in line to Downes with the vice-captain role he will no doubt have a big impact in organising the team, and knowing what to expect from the teams. The reason I have him down to be one of the most influential this season is because everything has appeared to have ran through him, he'll pick it up from the defence, or the midfield and look to start the next attack, see who's making the run, creating the space and where next a goal might come from. Most of all he'll hopefully keep that shape in the diamond, although he won't always be sat back he'll be the one deepest of the midfield, and most aware of what's around him, who is out of position, and where the next option is. With everything starting of through him the players know they can fall back and play it too him to retain possession and keep the ball moving letting everyone re-assert themselves, ready for the next attack.
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| "Promotion? Easy..." @ctfcofficial |
Driving force
Definitely one of the most exciting players in pre-season, Harry Pell has instantly become a fan favourite amongst Cheltenham fans. His tall stature and ability to dribble at pace is a surprising combination to see, he really looks a threat when he's on the ball, and off it as he's always looking to win it back. Hopefully with his presence he's able to be a handful for opponents and won't be an easy target to take off the ball being the main driving force from the midfield through to the attack. He will be able to get the ball into the most dangerous positions in quick time to play onto another player adding to have a dig, or maybe making his way through the opposition himself to smash into the top corners which he's shown he can do. If he can't do this then the fans still hold a lot of faith in the other players around him to finish, Billy Waters certainly has a spring in his step as the advanced play-maker, Amari Morgan-Smith hasn't been shy of the goal either. Along with this there is his strike partner Danny Wright an absolute work-horse up top who will definitely be using his body and strength to knock a few on and provide assists as well as goals. It's finally nice to see a big player actually work for the ball in the Cheltenham team.
It's clear to see that Gary Johnson has got a real good mix in the team, and maybe he will be the most influential out of them all. But it's now down to the players to do the talking on the pitch as they've shown us what they can do. Automatic promotion will be tough, and is a huge task, although I think consistency will see them through the finish line, and as of yet they've only been able to show that attacking intent up to 75-80 minutes, they need to show if for 90 minutes across the whole 46 games in the season. Play-offs is the realistic goal, and we're certainly more than capable of challenging for that play-off spot at Wembley come the end of the season.
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| Lets be having ya! Source - ctfc.com |
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