Assistant caretaker-manager Gerard Nash believes Mick McCarthy could have had Town challenging for the top six this season but for the injuries which have struck the squad throughout the campaign.

The Blues currently have 10 senior players unavailable, having had similar numbers sidelined at earlier points in the season.

Nash says he owes a lot to McCarthy, who appointed him U23s coach two years ago, and says the last week or so has been far from run of the mill, as is the case at any club when a manager moves on.

“I think it always is surreal,” he said. “I’ve put on record my thanks to Mick McCarthy, I kind of don’t really want to speak about him loads because we all need to move on.

“But it is surreal because of how he left. He said himself, the staff and players, we all enjoyed working with him.

“My own personal opinion, if he’d had a lot of the players who have been in the treatment room fit all season, I’d be backing him to get us in the top six. Obviously it hasn’t happened and he’s moved on.

“Yes, it has been surreal and that’s what happens at football clubs. Most of the players are experienced and they’ve probably been at other clubs where it happens, managers leave and there’s always change.

“I think everybody’s quite adaptable to that now. Maybe we’re different as a club because it hasn’t happened so often. Yes, it’s been surreal and we’re all just trying to keep together and stick together for the final three games of the season.”

He says instilling a togetherness on and off the field is the prime target for the remaining three matches.

“We’ll obviously just be keeping the fires burning for three or four weeks, there’ll be bigger decisions made by the people in charge of the club,” he continued.

“We’ve just got to try and keep the team performing as best we can, be together as a club.

“Ideally we’d probably like to introduce some of the younger players if the opportunity arises but we just want to keep it going as best we can and I think, hopefully, starting on Saturday, we’ll be able to bring a bit more togetherness for everybody and hopefully kick on from there.”

Despite being younger than some of the players he’s been coaching, Nash says the senior squad’s attitude has been first class over the last week.

“I’ve never had anything other than respect from all the players and I’ve given the same back, there’s been nobody’s mentioned my age,” he said.

“I think we’ve got a really good dressing room in terms of people, first and foremost. And I don’t just say that willy-nilly, I’ve been here a long time and there’s some really good people in that dressing room who care about the football club and who have the right standards that you want in the dressing room.

“And I think you saw that on Saturday. The people who played, they gave everything they could for the club.”

When it comes to selecting the team, Nash says Bryan Klug names the XI but with input from Nash and fellow assistant Chris Hogg.

“Bryan’s in charge, he is the caretaker-manager. He’s been very open with Chris and I, sharing our ideas but Bryan’s in charge,” he said.

Having watched both Nottingham Forest and Aston Villa in action for McCarthy, Nash has been able to provide insights into their systems and tactics, although says all matches are available at the push of a few buttons these days anyway.

“That’s correct, but nowadays there’s Will Stephenson, who is the club’s analyst, and you can now watch every single game you want anywhere in the world,” he added.

“A lot of the analysis work is done by Will, he did it with the gaffer and TC, so the players are well-versed with how he works, how we operate, so it’s carried on as normal in that regard.

“I’ve seen the opposition but Will, [goalkeeper-coach] Malcolm Webster, [fitness coach] Andy Liddell, key staff, they’re still here, they’re still working as hard as they always have and I think that’s actually helped with the continuity within the dressing room so far.”

Photo: TWTD

DurhamTownFan added 17:21 - Apr 19 Maybe we needed to think more then about why so many of our players and especially central midfielders got injured under his management (all bar Skuse, it seems). Injuries are part of football, but we did seem to have big problems in central midfield what with Williams, Hyam, Adeyemi, Bishop, DoZell over the last few years, and not just minor injuries either
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12th_Man added 17:22 - Apr 19 Can we please stop talking about him he has gone time to move on
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nineteenseventyeight added 19:21 - Apr 19 If you drop your best striker and one of your better defenders at home you wont make the top 6 too
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Dissboyitfc added 19:23 - Apr 19 Well you are entitled to your opinion, however at the start of the season we were amongst the bookies favourites for the drop! And given that we had a very good fortuitous start which yielded a a maximum return of 12 points from our first 4 games, we could well be in relegation trouble without that start. I say Fortuitous because every game at the start we were second best but managed to score with each attack. The Barnsley game being one in which they could have been out of sight by half time! second half we have two attacks and score 2 goals! He has gone and i am pleased. No one at the club needs to keep singing the praises of him. He was good for us for 3 seasons. the last 2 were a mistake and he should have gone, well now he has! bring in the new manager!

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algarvefan added 20:19 - Apr 19 I'm glad we are looking for afresh management team but I have to say I think he is right, the injuries to key players was pivotal this season and with a fully fit squad I'm sure we would have made the top 6, but promoted, who knows, it's just a lottery. I'm looking for someone to put us in the top 2 please!!!!
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rfretwell added 20:21 - Apr 19 Very harsh Dissboy. You couls say the same about most clubs in any season. Watch videos if Bishop playing before his injuries struck and you will see the huge difference he could have made this season.
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blueboy1981 added 20:32 - Apr 19 ....... can only be seen as lip service - McCarthy had long enough - and never once looked like changing his tactics/ style of play, injuries or not. And did we ever see an effective Plan B - in fact we never saw one at all. Short memories - or obstinacy springs to mind from some.
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TimmyH added 21:14 - Apr 19 Nash is entitled to his opinion but on this occasion sadly he is wrong...with Mick's tactics he wouldn't have got us into the play-offs, 'challenging' what would that mean? a bit vague, like the 2015/16 season? when we ended up 7th but were never play-off material and out of the running by April and only dead rubber games which we won at the end leap frogged us to that position. The stars aligned for Mick in 2014/15 with so many things coming together, even with players free from injury this season we would not have made 6th place.

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bobble added 23:02 - Apr 19 the dark lord ,mr jewel ,mick were not good enough...thats all. every team has injuries but they still get promoted, win,lose,draw...etc
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Karlosfandangal added 23:31 - Apr 19 Love the way Town will be a team to reckon with as soon as a new manager turns up. Let's find out who first before we pronounce Town as champions........progress in the right direction would be nice.
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BeattiesBackPocket added 10:03 - Apr 20 I remember Sheff Utd had 10 yest 10 injuries to first team players against us in the cup and still beat us and it still took 70 odd minutes to register a shot!! Every team gets injuries who's fault is it that he buys players who are prone to injury why do we think we got Huws (Who is a very good player at this level no doubt) on the cheap!? Warnock is not an idiot he got rid because he was on a decent wage but didn't play enough, who bought in Williams when he was already injured then bemoaned him being injured!? Who then when Williams was fit didn't play him anyway same as Bishop when he was fit neither were played and Williams played 2 Wales games in that time he was warming our bench because Douglas and Skuse were preferred so Ive had enough of the excuses lets move on to a new manager and give him our support!

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