Ian Varley
Varley delighted to keep Hincks as Gills look to finish strongly
Published by Gillingham Ladies Media on February 26, 2010
Speaking exclusively with the Gillingham Ladies Official Website, manager Ian Varley spoke about his side’s recent match postponements and shared his views on striker Ashlee Hincks, who recently turned down a move to Millwall.
“I’m obviously very frustrated with last week’s game being postponed,” said Varley.
“Just when it looks like we’ll get a good run of games then the weather gets worse.
“There’s nothing we can do about it, though, and the girls have been great, attending training twice a week – we’ve been running one as a fitness session and one as football session.
“Although nothing can compensate for match fitness I feel it’s really important that we keep doing our fitness sessions in order to finish the season strongly.”
Last week top scorer Ashlee Hincks was the subject of an approach by Premier League side Millwall, but Ash turned down the move, preferring to remain with the Gills.
It’s a huge boost for the team and for the manager, as Varley explained.
“We’re all absolutely delighted that Ash has turned down Millwall’s approach and just proves as well as being a fantastic player she is also very loyal and determined to get Gillingham into the Premier League.
“Obviously I was slightly worried when the approach came in but Ash has already turned down various unofficial offers from other Premier League clubs so I was confident that she’d stay with us.
“Personally I think if she continues to perform at the level she has been performing week-in week-out then surely she can get herself back into the England setup.”
Looking ahead to the weekend’s match with Ashford, Varley revealed the squad had received a boost with the return of playmaker Danni Farmer.
“On the injury front it’s good to have Farms back in training and she’ll go straight into Sunday’s squad for the game against Ashford,” he said.
“It’s crucial we have all our players fit and raring to go for the final part of the season.”