PAUL EVANS: WE NEED A PERFORMANCE THAT IS WORTHY OF WEARING THE BLUE SHIRT!
PHOTO FROM SGORIO
Port Talbot Town manager Paul Evans has rallied his players up for the Derby against Afan Lido on Saturday.
As Afan Lido manager, he won the Welsh League Cup and were losing finalists in the Welsh Cup final. As a player he was part of the side that took on Riga in the UEFA Cup back in 1995.
“We won the Welsh League Cup due to Liam McCreesh being an integral part, along with Carl Evans. We had great team spirit and friendships. It was a great team and squad to be part of.”
The former Afan Lido manager who played over 800 games for the club, will be in the opposite dugout on Saturday at a club very close to his heart.
“I’m very much forward looking to the local Derby and returning to my old club where I have great memories and a lot of good friends there.
We have been too stop start this season, we are hoping that it will all fall into place quickly, Saturday would be a good starting point.
Saturday is a huge game for us, we need to go out and put in a performance worthy of wearing the blue shirt, we are going there for all three points!”
Former player and now Lido manager McCreesh paid tribute to Paul Evans, praising the current Port Talbot manager and his coach Lee Holmes, so Evan returned the favour.
“Lovely words from Liam and we appreciate them but it was when you had players like Liam, the quality they brought to us made out job easier. Liam was a great leader for us on the park, an outstanding player and he’ll take that into management.”
He also paid respect to the Port Talbot fans this season.
“Port Talbot is a huge club, with great support. We are honoured to be managers of the club. Everyone who plays for us will lift their game. Our great supporters help enable our players to raise their game.”
In their last fixture, Port Talbot lost at home to Monmouth Town who are also near the bottom.
“Having lost to Monmouth in our last game, that roved to me that if you’re not willing to work hard and earn the right to play you won’t win games in this league.”
Port Talbot are surprisingly towards the bottom of Division One, despite being in the Welsh Premier League last season but Evans is optimistic that the club will progress.
“We are looking to progress over the next few months, as the club is moving well off the field, we are working hard to get it right on it. Our aim is to be back in the WPL as soon as we can. It would be great for the club and our supporters to be back a the top level.”
The game kicks off at 14:00 on Saturday at the Marson Stadium.
