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John Embery interview

John Embery interview

sam surbey21 Feb 2019 - 09:49
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https://www.hernebayfootballcl

Steve Barton Talks to John ahead of Saturday's game

If anyone doubted what we were capable of then the victory over Ashford United showed just what we can achieve. Some people seem to forget that most of our players are not long out of youth football, the majority of the squad are late teens/very early 20s.

Against Ashford they grafted and showed commitment and a desire not to get beaten. The win typified what they can do. When you are young and still learning about the game confidence plays a big part. Myself and Jermaine are not ones to rant and rave over mistakes as long as the players show 100% commitment. We would ask the supporters, who are superb, to understand this and not get on the players’ backs when things are not going well.

One thing that we are trying to install into the lads is game management. Ashford’s recent signing Jay May should really be playing at a higher level and we coped well with him for 90 minutes. Then when we should have been keeping hold of the ball and finding the corners we gave it away cheaply and May capitalised and pulled a goal back, leading to some nervous moments. But this will come with time.

We took a bit of stick a couple of weeks ago on a social media site with an allegation that we had not paid a player money that he was due. This was easy to sort out as it was not true. There is always at least two sides to a story and misunderstandings can easiely happen. We have known the player’s father for many years, talked to him on the phone and have since met up with him and he understands the outcome. Herne Bay have a great fanbase, they pay their money and have every right to comment. From a fan’s point of view all we ask of the players is they give their all for the shirt they play in, hopefully win or at least draw, but if they lose then they have done their best.

There was one match in the first half of the season when we felt this was not the case. The performance was poor and many of the players looked like they were just going through the motions. We decided to fine the whole team that played that day their match fees as the supporters deserved more and just weren’t getting value from their outlay. The players accepted this and two weeks later we went to Whitstable and played them off the park. There were some big smiles on everyone involved with the club’s faces that day.

Myself and Jermaine have been fortunate to have made a good living out of playing football and as managers of Herne Bay FC have not taken a penny out of the club. 100% of our budget goes to the players, whilst managers at other clubs take their cut first and the rest goes to the players.

The potential at Herne Bay is immence and we want to part of it, to contribute and help the club grow. Many of the players are young and still learning and so are we. We won’t get 100% of things right 100% of the time, and when we make mistakes we try and learn from them.

Whilst results, and points won this season might not always show it, we are trying to build a structure on the football side for the future. Possibly our best signing this season is someone that the supporters may not have heard of…our physio/sports therapist Leon Benning. Leon attended the London School of Osteopathy, has a Diploma in football medicine from FIFA and a Postgraduate Diploma in Sports & Exercise Medicine from the University of South Wales. He has loads of pitchside experience, mainly in rugby, at club and county level. He is an asset to the club and has certainly helps players recover much more quickly from their injuries. Completing the team in the dugout is coach Phil Wisson, qualified to UEFA B level, he assists with the setting up of the team and with both myself and John as qualified coaches, gives us the opportunity to give more targeted and individual coaching where necessary and Phil also looks after the warm-ups for us.

We had an approach from another club for Tom Carlton and he was informed. Tom has decided to move on and we would like to thank him for his contribution over the last season and a half and wish him well for the future.

Three Bridges on Saturday is a very winnable game, away from home, and we must turn up, work hard and graft and there is no reason why we can’t come away with all three points. It will be down to us to apply ourselves. After the Ashford game we are full of confidence. Callum (Adonis-Taylor) was unwell and did not train on Tuesday and we will need to keep an eye on the situation. He played brilliantly last week alongside Ben (Gorham) and Danny (Rumbol) but if he doesn’t make it we have Connor (Wilkins) who can drop back into the central back three. Jake’s (Embery) hamstring is a concern but we hope to have him available for selection. Alex (Mulrooney-Skinner), Danny (Leonard) and Raphe (Brown) are still not 100% but again we should have them fine for the match.

We always have a team down on paper at the beginning of the week but lots of things can happen between then and the game and it is important that the team that we put out has the right balance, fortunately we have some players who can fit in several positions. Victor Aiyelebola scored again for the Under 23s on Monday and may make the bench, but then they have a match at Sittingbourne on Saturday so he may play there.

We have eleven matches left with only Horsham, Whyteleafe and VCD Athletic in the top half of the table which leaves us eight games with those around or just above us. It has been a frustrating season at times, but are targeting at least five wins which would push us up the table and into a safe position.

Hope to see as many of you as possible at Three Bridges and once again a big thanks for your support and loyalty.

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