WOODLEY United manager Jamie Williams was delighted after the Kestrels earned a long awaited league victory with a 4-2 triumph over Langley.
It was a nervy ending for Woodley with their opponents clawing the game back to 3-2 having gone three goals down, but the hosts held their nerve to seal their first league win since August with Max Laschok bagging a hat-trick late on to clinch a 4-2 victory.
“We were pretty comfortable for most of the game and we’re 3-0 up, until we gave a penalty away and once they scored the boys got a bit nervous which I think it’s a consequence of the season that they have had,” said Williams.
“We dropped a bit deeper and stopped doing the things that we are good at. Then they got their second and we started to worry a bit but thankfully the boys settled down and we started to do what we’re good at again and then got the fourth on the break.
“Overall it was a lot more nerve wracking than it should have been.”
The win sees Woodley move off the foot of the table with just their second win in 14 games this season in the Hellenic League Division One East.
“Since the week before, with our win in the cup over Chalfont Wasps, it seemed to lift everyone and was a weight lifted off everyone’s shoulders,” continued Williams.
“So the mood going into Saturday against Langley was very good. Getting into the winning habit is massive for us.
“The circumstances coming into the job were difficult. We wanted it to feel like it was a fresh start for the boys. Luckily we had a couple of players coming back from injury and I managed to bring in a couple of players which has helped to freshen things up and feel like a new start. It has almost been like the start of a new season again which has been the big difference.
“It’s huge to have players high on confidence so I was delighted to see Max (Laschok) score a hat-trick. I’ve known max since I was a kid, he used to play against the teams that I coached in the past, so I’ve wanted to work with him for about seven years, he’s a natural goal scorer that kid. So it was about trying to fill him with as much confidence as I could before the game and sticking to the things that he is best at.
He was almost trying too hard, making runs out wide and doing things that aren’t really his game. So I wanted him to stay in the areas where he is going to score goals and he certainly did that. He pretty much scored with his first chance against Langley so I knew he would bounce on from that.
“I was reserve manager for a year and over that time quite a few of those players have come to play for me for quite a few games so I knew pretty much, if not all of the players. A few of them I know really well, Ben, I’ve coached since he was 14. I’ve also brought in a few of the reserve lads with me into the first team squad who would have played in Tuesday’s game had it not been called off.
“Sometimes as a new manager you go into the squad and don’t know anyone so going in and knowing a lot of the lads already has made things much easier.
The Kestrels arranged fixture on Tuesday night against AFC Aldermaston was postponed, while they head into the weekend on the back of two victories going into a relegation six-pointer against Abingdon Town.
The Kestrels are looking for their third consecutive win in all competitions against the league’s bottom side on Saturday and new boss Williams insists that it’s a big opportunity for his side to continue the momentum they’ve already began to build on.
“It’s frustrating for us when we’re on a winning run and the game gets called off. Of course it would have been difficult for us going over there, we’re in a position now where if we lose one it could be a case of one step forward and two steps back.
“Although it was a midweek game, we had a pretty strong squad to go over there so it would have been nice to play the game and try to keep building on the momentum that we’ve already gained.
“It’s really difficult to keep a consistent squad because the boys work all over the place so I think that’s why across the board for midweek games you see that the squads can be very different to what they would be on a Saturday.
“That’s a problem that every team in the league has. There’s always players carrying knocks as well so we have to try and manage that so I would have made some changes and rotated.
“We’ve got to look at the Abingdon game on Saturday as another chance to pick up three points, but I’m sure they will be doing exactly the same so it certainly won’t be easy.
“We have to look at progressing up the table. I told the boys when I took over that I believe in the amount of ability in the dressing room so we have to look at pushing right up the league. Of course it won’t be easy, it’s a very strong division but we have to keep the belief.”
