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Cook: When You Amass a Lot of Players, It's Not Easy to Keep Everyone Happy
Thursday, 11th Mar 2021 12:54

Town boss Paul Cook says he's asking the members of the large squad he inherited who are currently out of the side to show a little patience. He says they will eventually get their chance, citing striker Kayden Jackson as an example.

Cook says everyone came through the 1-1 draw with Lincoln with picking up any knocks.

“Perfectly well, really good game, I enjoyed Tuesday night’s game,” Cook reflected. “It was a really good clash of two teams who probably cancelled each other out in the end and that can happen in a football match.”

Cook made three changes for the game against the Imps and believes managing the situation with players not in the team is an important aspect of management.

“Your relationship with your players is huge, it’s absolutely paramount to your success because the most important people are the ones who aren’t playing,” he said.

“They’re probably the most unhappy at the club and you’ve got to give them hope and belief that they’re going to play a part in the future.

“One of my small criticisms of where we are today is the number of players we’ve amassed. Every football club is different but we have amassed a lot of players and I think when you amass a lot of players, it’s really difficult to keep everyone happy.

“But everyone in the squad’s bought into myself and Gary [Roberts] and the rest of the coaching staff since I’ve come in.

“They all understand and I try and explain to them that I can’t keep everyone happy today, but hopefully by tomorrow or the next week [I’ll be able to do that].

“If you look at Kayden Jackson for example as a perfect case point, he came on for two minutes the other night, but the reality over the next week is that we’re going to be seeing a lot more of Kayden Jackson, so I think we’re just asking the players for a little bit of patience.”

Jackson returned to action as a sub in the games against Gillingham and Lincoln having returned to the fold under Cook after his exile to the U23s under former boss Paul Lambert.

Asked what he likes about Jackson, who Cook appears to hint may come in and start at Fleetwood on Tuesday with James Norwood unavailable due to his court case, the new manager said he wouldn’t be drawn into saying too much about any one member of his squad.

“I like all the players, I very, very rarely individualise,” he said. “My job is to put them into a collective now. I believe that the best teams are made up of all functioning components.

“We need defenders who can defend, we need full-backs who can attack, we need midfielders who handle the ball and can pass forward and break up play.

“We need flair players being very productive in what they do, we need strikers to score goals. I haven’t got much of a problem here by the way lads, have I?”

Cook has already said since joining Town that he’s not one for chopping and changing his side. Does he believe the modern footballer can play Saturday-Tuesday, Saturday-Tuesday?

“I think if we keep giving the excuse, they’ll find a cop-out won’t they?” he said. “What we do historically is look back to teams who used to play [every game] and I think what we’ve all got to accept is that we’re in an extraordinary year, aren’t we?

“Someone said the other day that at this time last year, you probably had six fixtures left. This time now we’re looking at 14.

“I think the most important thing is that we respect the year we’ve just had and going forward I’m hopeful that the fixture congestion and the fixture demands on players becomes a little bit less next year.

“We all need football, we all need supporters back in, so I don’t think we need to debate that.”


Photo: Matchday Images



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martin587 added 13:02 - Mar 11
Far too much dead wood at the club and a massive clear out is required in the summer.I'm fully confident PC will resolve this ridiculous situation he has inherited .
23

Suffolkboy added 13:03 - Mar 11
Articulates well, chooses his manner of delivery with natural ease , and ensures the content is appurtenant and positive ; provides enthusiasm and optimism for all ,but doesn't dodge realities !
Especially reassuring he believes in close man management .
COYB
19

Squeezy78 added 13:06 - Mar 11
“We need defenders who can defend, we need full-backs who can attack, we need midfielders who handle the ball and can pass forward and break up play.

“We need flair players being very productive in what they do, we need strikers to score goals. I haven't got much of a problem here by the way lads, have I?”

Emphasis being on the 'need' here i think. We certainly haven't 'got.
3

NITFC added 13:15 - Mar 11
The most important players to keep happy are our own
8

multiplescoregasms added 13:55 - Mar 11
I must say I am liking the things PC is saying and think that he will make the changes where he sits fit. Total back him on that.......Though he missed the word 'Average' out between 'of' and 'players' :-)
4

ChrisFelix added 14:00 - Mar 11
Captain calamity can attack & defend, but sadly he cant do both.
-11

Timefliesbyintheblue added 14:12 - Mar 11
ChrisFelix - out of all the things Paul Cook has said (and to be fair his honesty and cheerfulness have been refreshing), you still find time to take a swipe at Luke Chambers. It says far more about you than it does about a man who is a wonderful advert for our football club.
He plays because he deserves to play and because he is one of the fittest players we have at the club. Also our defensive record for a couple of seasons now is not a problem - it is our inability to score that is the overall issue.
Lay off Chambers - it gets tiresome
23

buzbyblue added 14:13 - Mar 11
Actually ChrisFelix I'd say he can do neither properly now, legs have gone
-13

cat added 14:13 - Mar 11
Everything P.C has said and done so far have ticked the boxes for me and I sincerely hope that he manages to achieve something the previous lot failed to do and that's win promotion.
There's to many hangers on in the club, players who have been here over the last 5 seasons (and some) who have not got what it takes for success. We need a couple of experienced players to blend in with our promising youngsters to take us forward.
The club had become far too cosy and we need change in order to move on and progress.
11

SaigonTractor added 14:45 - Mar 11
I really don't know why Chambers gets singled out when I can't think of any defender at our club who hasn't made at least one howler this season. Except maybe Wilson who's been injured for most of the season.
10

ChrisR added 14:56 - Mar 11
The big squad must give ITFC an advantage with the concentration of fixtures remaining ?

2

ChrisR added 14:56 - Mar 11
The big squad must give ITFC an advantage with the concentration of fixtures remaining ?

0

norfolkbluey added 15:15 - Mar 11
Some folk on here just can't stop chewing the same bone over and over. Not every captain can be infallible every times but we have a natural leader who is without doubt been a real stalwart for the club. What the team lacks is a central midfielder who commands and dominates and that is why we don't score enough goals. The likes of John Wark, Holland are nowhere to be seen. Attacking midfielders are the engine of the team and at this moment we are not incisive, fast or tactically aware of where to place an intuitive pass. PC has to find a potential de Bruyner from our ranks. We have some fine young players who have the potential to develop but so often big clubs come in and snatch them for 'peanuts'. We all have high hopes for promotion but it's a big ask when we are not scoring enough goals. I say good luck Paul and I can't wait to see how you do.
12

Cheshire_Blue added 15:21 - Mar 11
Lambert has gone. Time to turn our attention to Chambers. So typical of the type of support we offer on this site.
4

Linkboy13 added 15:27 - Mar 11
Been saying for over a year now our squad is too big and full of pretty mediocre players.,and can cause friction and bad feeling with players not getting involved. I would like to see ten or eleven released with four or five guality players brought in. The one problem is our youngsters are not exactly pulling up trees at the moment despite all the hype given to them on here and are not even ready to go out on loan to league two clubs and when they do they fail to impress our last two decent players being Downes and Wolfenden harsh i know but facts.
3

pragmatic added 15:34 - Mar 11
One of the first interviews PC did, he stated supporters can be the 12th man, but can also become 10th man during games, ie less criticism & abuse to a player who may be having a bad game, he also said you can get negative as much as you want after games, so when we are able attend games hopefully some of the Toxic Tongue supporters get the message,!!! COYB
2

oldelsworthyfan added 15:38 - Mar 11
Chambers is excellent in the opposition penalty area, but it's a 'big ask'
to expect him to chase all the way back after speedy forwards as well.
He is one of our best headers of the ball.
5

runningout added 16:34 - Mar 11
at this moment in time there isn't one player at ITFC wowing anyone!! Maybe different in a couple of months
3

BobbyBell added 17:28 - Mar 11
The problem with a big squad is trying to give everyone a chance means lots of changes to the team. I still believe that a settled first team is essential to success. Previous managers have changed the starting 11 far too many times. Players need to get to know each other's games then things will start to click. I remember the days when match programs had the team printed on the back as it was usually the same 11 starting every week. We occasionally had to cross one out and write another name in due to injury.
2


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