Joey, how important could that goal from Elliot be for your season?
We’re at that stage now where on every matchday we’re talking about important moments and keeping momentum building. I felt we deserved that today.
We were always aware it was going to be a really tight game. It just shows how much improvement ourselves and Salford since the first half of the season.
Slightly different styles of football but they’ve made adjustments and Gary’s got them playing really well and they’re on a decent run themselves. They’re looking to try and gatecrash the play-off picture or maybe the automatic picture.
So, we knew it was going to be a tricky game and we knew it might have been one goal that decides it. When we’ve got some of the players we’ve got, we can open the door, obviously, that’s Elliot on this occasion.
You always feel confident and that you’ve got a chance. I thought the group effort has been exceptional all year, but particularly today with the lads who came off the bench.
Luke Thomas has been working really hard to get himself back into contention. He plays a lovely ball to Elliot. He’ll get an assist for it but I think young Bill needs to take a little bit more credit.
But it’s a super ball. Credit to Harry Anderson in the first period. He kept pushing Touray back. He got him on a yellow card and he kept tiring him out. The left-back for them I think was in the League Two team of the year, despite Salford’s struggles.
We knew we could soften him up and that would give someone like Harvey Saunders or Luke Thomas the opportunity to come in when he was fatiguing and attack the inside of him and create something.
As it was, that was how it played out. It doesn’t always go to plan but we made aggressive subs, obviously barring Whelo. We made aggressive subs to try and win the game at 0-0 and we got rewarded for that.
Life as a football manager you can’t stop for a second. You started Leon Clarke but he obviously didn’t come out, What was the problem there?
He just felt his hamstring in the warm-up I think. He’s gutted in there as you can imagine. He worked really hard to get in contention. He‘s had a few cameos and he’s worked himself back into the starting 11 and then he’s had a setback.
We’re all gutted for him and we said before about winning the game for Clarkey. He’s been a really good acquisition. He hasn’t played the minutes we would like him to obviously. But as a man, he’s been superb in and around the dressing room.
He’s a leader in the midst of a young group that we have. We’re devastated for him. Hopefully, we can get a bit of good news but it’s early days and we’ve got everything crossed for him.
You play Port Vale on Monday. There are five points between you and them, how much importance do we place on that fixture or is it the same as every fixture in this crucial stage of the season?
I think we’ve got it all to gain. If we go there and get the result we all desire it certainly puts the cat amongst the pigeons for the last three games. For us to give ourselves the opportunities is a huge tip of the cap to the lads.
They’ve worked so hard in the midst of all the disruption that’s gone on, whether it is changes behind the scenes, court cases, or whatever it is. They’ve remained steadfast and focused and as I say I’m proud to be the coach tonight.
Luke Thomas, you mentioned him there. At Salford it was a really tough night for him. He missed that big chance and then he got a tongue-lashing in the press afterwards. What has he done to work back into contention this time because he did the change the game? He picked up those pockets and he threatened a couple of moments before and then he did it again and it created a goal.
You can see if you look at him. Go and dig out a photo from his first six or seven games for us and look at him from today’s match. He’s lean. He’s disciplined. He’s eating right. He’s sleeping right. He’s got his life back on track and that has allowed him to come and make an impact.
For me, I love him. I’d take him beyond this season, but he’s another team's property. The work that we’ve done to get him back and more importantly the work he’s done, we can only lead the horse to water.
The penny has got to drop. It hasn’t been a linear progression, where he gets better and better. As there is with all young men there are setbacks on the road but he’s kept turning up.
I think the trust he’s got now from the group because of the hard work and yards he’s done, staying in and doing extra sessions. Sometimes getting dragged into the gym by Couttsy and Glenn Whelan, but going in the gym and getting the work done. The extra work needed to close the gap on players.
As I say, he’s a super kid and an incredibly talented young man and I’d take him because I believe in what he’s about. He’s not out of the woods yet, he’s got to keep paying his dues and working hard but today will do his confidence no end of good.
Your centre backs would’ve played against a lot of target men this season but perhaps none as savvy and clever at a high level as Matt Smith. But they seemed to cope with that challenge really well.
We said to the boys about not taking him on in a street fight because he’s very well-versed in that. He’s handed the backside of a number of Championship defenders from his Millwall days. He’s a real threat.
For me, he’s changed their season around. He’s given them a focal point that can get runners off of and get the wide men into the game. They’ve got miles better. The acquisition of Watson from Tranmere who’s a runner bombing on from midfield trying to get the second phase of Smith.
I’ll level with you. I wouldn't want to watch it every week. Your neck will be cranked. I don’t think it takes you an enormous way in the game, but it’s effective and it’s efficient.
Burnley under Sean Dyche. We played very direct into Sam Vokes or Ashley Barnes. It can take you a long way in the game. Enormous credit to Gary, it’s a tough gig Salford, especially with the people who invented football, the class of ‘92 sitting in the stands and critiquing you. It can’t be easy when you’ve got 11 Premier League titles and European cups sitting behind you critiquing every decision. It’s tough enough when it’s just a normal fanbase.
Certainly, when we went there, there was a period where they were quite trigger happy. Although he’s changed that in recent times, Gaz Neville. They’ve persisted with Gary who is a really good manager and he’s fashioned a team out of what they’ve had. A lot of smart signings in January and he’s made them a really tough team to play against.
Like us, if the season started in January, it would probably be us, Port Vale and Salford and Exeter sitting at the top of the table
Gary Bowyer was irate at full time, did you get a flavour of what he was upset about?
Not just at full time, he was pretty irate throughout the whole game. He’s a top fella and he cares about his team. He challenges every decision and he just wants every decision to go his way. I love his passion. It’s fantastic to see.
The fourth official might argue it differently. He might have an earache but it’ll all be on the left-hand side because there was nothing coming from our side.
I thought the referee and the officials were superb today. There were a couple of meaty challenges but I thought the game was played in the right spirit. Two teams pushing on to the top end of the table and desperate to win. I thought it was a really good game. Two contrasting styles. One team wants to play and the other wants to go a bit more direct.
I thought it was a really good advert for League Two. A nice big crowd in. Just look at our pitch, superb. That’s not League Two is it? That’s League One or the Championship. Don’t have pitches like that in League Two
You talk about big crowds. There is going to be a big crowd on Monday. I think there’s going to be a couple of thousand Gasheads at least for that game. Port Vale are obviously in excellent form as well. They have several goal-threats with Wilson, Proctor and Ben Garrity who was very good here in the other game. Control has been the way for you, do you think you can go there and really put your stamp on a game like that or are you going to have to show a different side?
You’ve got to remember the lad got Sam Finley sent off early on in the game. I don’t think we’d have really had a problem with them. We definitely would not have lost the game had Sam stayed on and we stayed at 11 men.
If you remember with ten men we caused them lots of problems. We’ve got everything to gain and nothing to lose. Our fans are behind the team. If we don’t get the job done this year we’ll be gutted because we feel we’ve got a club that would improve League One.
Salford if they go up, great. They’ve thrown pots of cash at it to get from the Conference into the league. They’ve thrown enormous pots of cash at it. They’ve got the old pal Zach at Sky which gets them all the TV games.
They’ve got 150 fans here today. I don’t want to knock them but they’ve distorted the marketplace. Smith will be on eight or nine grand a week. It’s League Two. We get stuck. We have a go but they blow everyone out of the water.
You’ve got 150 fans here, it’s just not a sustainable business model. You’ve got Man City and Man United in the North West.
Port Vale for me are a historic football club. They’ve been around and in the doldrums. Darrell is over there and he’s had some bad news so you want them to have a good season. I really want them to do well just not on Monday because we have our own ambition.
When you hear about what’s happened they’re clearly motivated. They’ve got huge motivation in their group and Monday is going to be our toughest game.
We go in there with absolutely everything to gain. The group we’ve got, Antony Evans back on the park today, Josh Grant getting more minutes. We lost Clarkey which is a blow. But LT showed his hand. We don’t fear anyone.
Sean Dyche was sacked today. A coach that you worked with and had a lot of success with. What are your thoughts on Burnley’s decision to part ways with him?
I’m really surprised. Due to the job he’s done. Arguably he’s been Burnley’s best manager in living memory. For as long as I’ve been around that’s certainly the case. He’s done incredible things at the football club, I saw that when I was there. Building the infrastructure behind that.
Hasn’t gone and spent all the money on big lavish foreign signings and agents fees and transfer fees. He’s done it in a really sustainable way which has given the club a tremendous platform for the next ten years, not just next year.
From my experience there, I’m not in the dressing room I’m not in the club so I don’t know what’s gone on but I would think you’d have a much better chance with Sean Dyche, Ian Woan, Steve Stone and Tony Loughlan and Billy Mercer in the building than Burnley would without them.
I’m disappointed for them but every good thing comes to an end. Nine and a half years and I’ll be very surprised if Sean Dyche is not in employment by the start of next season.
It takes out the compensation that Burnley probably could have got. It’s sad to see it end that way. I think for the work he’s done he deserved to get to that ten years and he deserves to have a chance of keeping them out the trapdoor.
I text him this morning when I saw the news. I texted all the guys this morning just sending my love across to them and that I’m thinking of them. I’ll probably touch base with them this week to just make sure they’re okay.
I’m gutted because Burnley is a fantastic football club and he was a fantastic manager as a player for me. But he’s been an incredible manager for Burnley as a town and a football club. So, hopefully, the next man who comes in can take it on to the next stage but it’s going to be a very tough act to follow that’s for sure.
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