Why one midfielder was given the start vs Halifax over others
Coach Danny Webb credited midfielder Darren Oldaker’s ‘creative thinking’ for his starting position in the victory over Halifax.
Some fans speculated that James Berry or Jeff King might start in place of suspended player Michael Jacobs, but Oldaker ultimately received the start.
After his good performances off the bench, Berry had been the front-runner to start, while others had speculated that King may move back to right-back and Liam Mandeville would take up a position further forward.
Assistant manager Danny Webb said: “Darren is a very creative player. We just thought we would play him a little bit further up and see what happens. I think he was a bit frustrated with himself but I thought he put in a good shift and helped us get the win.”
Webb told the DT that he believed the decision to choose Oldaker over Berry or King was made in an effort to find a player who would play similarly to Jacobs. Particularly in the moment following the clean sheet (against Ebbsfleet), the back four is still together. Although Oldaker is a deeper player than Jacobs, I believe he shares Michael’s creative mindset, thus that was the reasoning behind it.
“Clearly, James Berry is a much better pure wide player, and Dobs and Coco playing on the same team right now is working… it is how we conceptualized it: “You throw Berry into that and it changes the dynamics a little bit, potentially, tonight.”
When asked if he believed it to work,
When asked if he believed it worked, Webb responded, “I think it worked because we won, but you can’t put everyone on the field and say ‘everyone is going to be a 10 out of 10’.
“In the future, each game will be evaluated on its own merits. DJ worked hard and contributed to our victory.
The league’s top team, Chesterfield, will take on Wealdstone at home on Saturday while maintaining a three-point lead.
Chesterfield’s players were voted “Man of the Match” in their thrilling victory over Halifax.
