Hinckley AFC manager Carl Abbott labelled his side’s 3-0 win over Cadbury Athletic as a “professional” performance.
AFC returned to winning ways with a controlling performance over a Cadbury side who had won their previous five to leapfrog their hosts in the table.
And Abbott emphasised how vital it was to get their first league points of the year on the board. He said: “It was very important. Three games lost on the bounce is unusual for us and it’s not someone that I’ve encountered too many times as a manager.
“That leaves a little hangover but we’ve played well in every game, acquitted ourselves really well in every game. If we’d been playing badly I’d be a bit worried but coming into today we didn’t even mention that we’d lost three games.
“It was a good performance on an awful pitch against a dogged side who get in your face and make it difficult. It was a very professional win.”
Abbott and his assistant Paul Tomlinson have been critical of their side’s performances on difficult pitches in recent years, but on a pitch at Cadbury that cut up throughout AFC were impressive and Abbott says his side are learning how to play on such pitches.
“It’s something we’re working on and it’s something we’re aware of. Against Atherstone we said to play in the channels and to a point we did, but we made a couple of mistakes and got punished against Atherstone.
“I think that was the start of our conscious effort to try and play the pitches a little better. Against Buckland we were terrific on a terrible pitch and today we played the pitch perfectly.
“We’re pragmatic and we’re where we need to be, playing in areas we need to play in. We’ve done it right today.
“That’s going to have to be a feature next season as well and we’ve finally maybe learnt our lesson, me and Tommo included in that.”
The game also saw a change of formation as JJ Melligan was introduced to a sweeper role in the middle of a back three. The former Wolves Casuals boss explained how that decision came about.
“When we look at the way the team’s evolved over the three seasons, we’re looking for the formula and we’re so close now. Up front we’re lively and score goals, in midfield with the three we dominate games and keep the ball well.
“Our centre halves are very strong and our full backs are exceptional but we concede too many goals in full back areas. If we can take that deficiency away from us, we’re close to being the finished article.
“Whether that gives us success this season of it rolls into next season is immaterial but we’re searching for that finished article.
“The thoughts were to step our full backs forward ten or fifteen yards, having them do exactly what they have been doing but taking some of that defensive responsibility away.
“Then we could see if we could defend our lines as a back three protected properly by our central midfielders.”
