Blues boss Kieran McKenna says he’s enjoyed working with centre-half Luke Woolfenden since he came to the club and believes the 23-year-old, part of a back three which has achieved a club record-equalling five consecutive clean sheets, is capable of plenty of further development.
"Woolfenden, who has now made 89 starts and six sub appearances for the Blues, scoring twice, has been among the success stories since McKenna took charge having been largely out of the picture under previous boss Paul Cook.
The academy product came back into the side in John McGreal’s final game as interim manager, the 1-1 home draw with Sunderland, in a back three alongside Janoi Donacien and George Edmundson, and that defence has remained the same for all 11 of McKenna’s matches so far.
Town have conceded only four times since the new boss came in and have kept five clean sheets in their last five games, equalling a league record previously achieved in August and September 2019, in March and April 2013 and during the same period in 1997.
A sixth on Saturday would surpass those runs, while preventing Morecambe from finding the net for the first 14 minutes on Saturday would be a new club record of 548 minutes without conceding.
Regarding Woolfenden, McKenna said: "We’ve been pleased with him, with his performances on the pitch and his contribution to the team, defensively to the clean sheets and to the organisation that we’ve had.
"But on the ball as well, he contributes really well and has taken on a responsibility to start the attacks off, and that’s something he enjoys doing.
"I’ve enjoyed working with him so far, it’s very early days, Luke’s still a very young player. I don’t think he’s anywhere near his full capacity yet, I think he’s got a lot of development to go in all areas.
"And it’s up to him now to stay hungry to keep improving. I think he’s in an environment here where he’s got every chance to improve and take himself to higher levels.
"I think he’s in a team that support him well, a team that plays in a style that can help him develop as well and it’s up to him now and his ambition and his drive to keep his concentration levels and his work-rate where it’s been, and to also push beyond that and set new boundaries and limits for himself and really see where he wants to go in his career.
"I’ve been impressed with him so far, has been enjoyable to work with him, very responsive and coachable and has got a good brain for the game, and I’m really hoping and looking forward to pushing him and challenging him now to see if he can keep going in that direction.”
Previous managers have spoken about Woolfenden’s relaxed demeanour, Paul Lambert once saying that "if Woolfy was any more laid-back he’d be horizontal!”.
"I think that’s his nature,” McKenna continued. "He’s a laid-back character and he doesn’t get too stressed about things day to day.
"When I speak to him about his life off the pitch, I think he enjoys a quiet and relaxed life and enjoys being with his partner and walking the dog and taking things pretty easy.
"So, that’s good, that’s fine with me. For me, everybody’s nature is their nature. Players are entitled to have their own personalities and they don’t have to fit into a certain box here, they don’t have to be something that they’re not.
"But when they come to work, there is a demand on their focus and concentration and a willingness to come in here and improve yourself.
"He’s certainly done that in my time here. He’s trained well, he’s focused in the meetings, he’s receptive to feedback and has shown a willingness to improve himself, and that’s all we can demand really to go on a pitch and do our best and stay concentrated and focused in the games.
"After that, do what you like whenever you go home. Sit on your sofa and how relaxed and how laid-back he wants to be when he’s not in work mode [is fine].
"It’s a privileged position for footballers, they’re not working 14 hours a day, they need to be able to dial in and concentrate and put their football face on for a few hours a day and after that, as long as you’re a respectful person, which he certainly has been inside the building here, as long as your behaviour is good then everyone is free to have their own personality and be how they are.”
Regarding the clean sheet record, he added: "I think that reflects on a lot of different aspects of our game. It reflects well on the mentality in the group to have those clean sheets.
"It’s a tough division to get clean sheets in. Every game, you face different challenges, we face some teams who have good possession and good penetration with their passing and other teams who are going to try and load your box and threaten you with a set play for large chunks of the game.
"So, to have a good clean sheet record, and not just in the recent run but across 11 games, reflects well on the mindset of the group and gives us a good chance to win games.
"Also, I’d certainly rather have a 5-4 than a 0-0, so we want to do whatever it takes to win the game, but we know keeping clean sheets gives us a better chance to go and win the game.”