Features, Ian Varley
Varley: The pressure is off
Published by Gillingham Ladies Media on August 28, 2010
The pressure is off Gills Ladies as they take on National Premiership side Millwall on Sunday afternoon.
The Ladies aren’t expected it to get a result due to the higher ranking of their opponents but manager Ian Varley is looking for a good performance.
Talking ahead of the League Cup game, he said: “The pressure is off of us a little bit on Sunday but we will need to perform better than we did on Sunday.
“We did alright against them in pre-season but it is a different game, it is a competitive game they will have players back and so will we.
“We missed a few players that day but it will be a good test and it should be a decent test and there is a decent rivalry going on there.
“First and foremost we are looking for a better performance on Sunday and that is the key thing. Hopefully we get a good reaction and put the work in; if we do that then we have got a chance of getting a result.”
The Ladies have worked hard on the training ground this week to put right the issues from their first game of the season, and Ian is pleased with what he has seen.
Ash Hincks hits her freek kick
He added: “We have a good week in training and it is nice to win your first game. Everyone has a little spring in their step even though we didn’t play great last week.
“We have some good facilities here and we are able to work on things whereas that has not been the case before. There has been a great turn out at training so that has been good, and we will go into the game looking to get the right result.”
Millwall will provide a tough test for Ian’s side but it is one that he is confident that his players will meet head on.
He said: “The new competition means that we can win a game, lose a game and draw a game and still get through to the next stages.
“People won’t expect us to beat Millwall but this new cup format gives us a chance to play our normal game as we still have two more games after as it isn’t a straight knock out competition now.”