Rory McArdle has made it clear that the Iron will maintain the standards set in last Saturday’s win at Charlton as they head into their clash with Walsall this weekend.
The United captain praised the team performance that saw the Iron climb back into the play-off zone with a 1-0 win.
Speaking to iFollow Iron, the 30-year-old put the victory down to his side's never say die attitude and the fans’ support.
ON THE IMPORTANCE OF TREATING WALSALL WITH THE SAME RESPECT AS HIGH-FLYING CHARLTON…
RM: It is massive. They are fighting for points as much as anyone else. They are going to be fighting as hard as they can, as they want to stay in the league. It is those sorts of games that everyone expects to turn up and win. Therefore, we know that we have got to make sure that we don’t just turn up and expect to win. The standards and the work rates have been set so we have just got to maintain them, take them into the game on Saturday and make it as difficult for Walsall as possible.
ON BEING BACK IN THE PLAY-OFF POSITIONS…
RM: It is where we want to be. I know that we had a period where we slipped out but we always knew that those positions were a game or two games away at most if we got the right results. We are back in there now. However, if you look at how hard we had to work in Saturday’s game, it’s important that we maintain that. It is not a case of being back in them now and being able to rest on our laurels, as it can change in as little as a week. We have to keep that positive mindframe. We are in the play-offs, we want to stay there and we want to take all of the positives from being there into Saturday’s game.
ON THE IRON’S WIN AGAINST CHARLTON…
RM: They have been on a good run themselves in the last month or so. I knew that it was always going to be a tough game but we knew that if we could put the gameplan together and keep the performance level as high as it has been in the last couple of weeks then we can try and get that clean sheet that we haven’t been able to get over in the last few months. We have given ourselves a massive chance and I think that 1-0 away from home is always a perfect result.
ON HOW THE CLEAN SHEET HAS BOOSTED CONFIDENCE IN THE TEAM…
RM: It is something that we always pride ourselves on. It has been frustrating that we haven’t been able to string a few together, as we would have liked to at the start of the season. I think Saturday’s result shows that we haven’t let it affect us too much and that if we keep doing the right things in training then it will come. Credit to the lads as everyone was putting their body on the line, winning headers, making blocks and making tackles. Everyone looks at the back four and Gillo (Matt Gilks). However, I think that it was a collective effort and everyone put in a shift to keep the ball out of the back of the net.
ON BEING RUTHLESS TO SEE OUT THEIR LEAD AGAINST CHARLTON…
RM: We know that the home team are always going to have a spell, especially when they are chasing the game and they start to go direct. I thought that we dealt with it well by winning the first and second balls. When we got the ball back we got up the pitch well and tried to take the sting out of the game and quieten them down. We could have got a second as well, as we were creating opportunities rather than sitting in and accepting a 1-0 scoreline. We tried to stay on the front foot, keep up the pitch and all in all I think that it was a great performance.
ON MAKING GLANFORD PARK A FORTRESS IN THE REMAINING HOME GAMES…
RM: We always find that when we go away from home and the opposition have the ball you hear the hustle and bustle of the crowd. They try and keep the referee on side too and little things like that can get you a decision that leads to a goal. We have a responsibility to give them something to cheer about so we want to start the game fast and stay on top of it. If the fans can maintain the atmosphere and keep the good vibes coming then hopefully it will keep the boys going on the pitch. It is important that for the last remaining home games we try and make this a fortress and make it as hard as possible for the away team to come and get a result.
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