Testimony Igbinoghene and Mason Rees scored late on to secure a 2-0 victory in a first outing of 2023, but there was a lot more behind the result that impressed McPike. A focus on sticking together and being competitive gave the players a simple message heading into the game, and that’s exactly what the U18 coach saw, as McPike was delighted with the commitment and says it’s only the first part of the process when it comes to changing mentality and behaviours.
On what he was looking for from the players
“We focused a lot on the process this week. Our identity, how we want to be seen by other teams and what we want to see of ourselves. The result’s a by-product of that.
“I wanted them to be competitive in one-v-ones, to move for each other and to stick together. Tactically, there wasn’t too much information – it was more around the principles and sticking together. I was happy with them.
“They need to stay in games, compete for each other and then try and take the chances when they come.
“Forest are a really strong side and work really hard – they’re relentless. They didn’t give up until the last minute, so it’s credit to the lads that they’ve been able to put in a performance like that against a team who work that way.”
On the two goals his side scored
“Right place, right time. He’s (Testimony) worked his socks off to get in that position and he’s been calm enough to meet the ball with the correct technique – it was a great goal.
“I’m really happy to see Mason score. He’s worked a lot on finishing from the edge over the last 18 months, so I’m really happy that the practice and persistence has paid off for him and he’s got his goal.”
On the fine margins and the process
“Those little one percent’s are the biggest part of the game – saves and blocks. You can set up how you want, but they committed to those little extra one percent’s today.
“It’s the process over the result. I’m happy we won the game and I’m happy for the players because of the commitment they’ve shown, but I would’ve still been happy otherwise.
“What I’ve asked them to do and what we’ve worked on this week, we saw a lot of in the game.
“We’ll reflect, see where we can get even better and keep working hard. It’s only the first part of a process of changing behaviours and mentality towards games and towards sticking together.”
