Watson wants South Shields to be 'relentless' after impressive Chester win
South Shields claimed a 4-0 home win against National League North rivals Chester on Saturday afternoon.
Ian Watson insisted he will not allow his South Shields players to ease off after they extended their fine start to the season with a dominant home win against National League North rivals Chester.
After taking maximum points and not conceding a goal in wins against Marine, Leamington and Alfreton Town, the Mariners were expecting arguably their sternest test of the campaign so far when they hosted a Chester side that have claimed a play-off place in two of the last three seasons. However, the visitors were given little respite from the first to the last minute of what was another impressive performance from Watson’s men.
After controlling possession for most of the opening half-hour, the Mariners finally opened the scoring ten minutes before half-time as Dan Dodds grabbed his first goal for the club with a deflected effort from around 20 yards from goal. That was enough to ensure his side took a narrow lead into the interval - but that all changed after the restart as Paul Blackett made it four goals in his last three games with a quickfire double. The Mariners top goalscorer then rounded off a fine individual display when his clever reverse pass released Cain Sykes in on goal and he rounded off the scoring by matching Dodds’ achievement with his first goal for the club.
The win means South Shields are still sat at the top of the National League North table as their focus quickly turns towards Monday’s long trip to Bedford Town - and Mariners boss Watson fired a little warning to his squad by insisting their standards can not drop as a hectic opening month to the campaign continues.
He told The Gazette: “In terms of the scoreline, being able to rest players and bring players off ahead of Monday, it has been perfect. What would have been a bad situation is if it was tight and lads had to play the entire game and then go again Monday.
“We are travelling down on Sunday so the lads will be recovering - so today has been perfect for us and we will be ready for another tough test on Monday. The players have been incredible, I can’t ask any more of them, their dedication is inspiring to see and they are getting the rewards. But we will keep working harder, we won’t take our foot off the gas, we will continue pushing forwards.”
Relentless
One notable aspect of the opening 45 minutes was the constant messages being relayed to the Mariners by Watson and assistant manager Carl Magnay as they continually called for improvements from their players. Several players received stern rebukes for misplaced passes, sloppy play or for failing to make the required runs and despite easing to an impressive win, Watson stressed he will continue to ensure his players are ‘relentless’ in their approach on and off the pitch.
He said: “What I am trying to do as a coach is be present in every moment so I try not to look at the scoreboard and I try and take every little situation in a game as it happens in front of me. As a head coach, I think I had a perception that I am a little bit of a soft touch so I have to be firm to ensure I keep my own standards high and so do the players. I am on to the boys all of the time, I knew I wouldn’t be a soft touch, I’ve seen good coaches and worked at top clubs. They are relentless and that is how we have to be to get to where we want to go.”
South Shields: Sheik, Dodds, Tinkler, Morse, Sykes, Carson (Smith), Jenkins (Briggs), Kelly, Ward (Walsh), Blackett (McGowan), Scott (Alcock) Subs: Mann, Savage
Chester: Wogan, Woodthorpe, Weeks, Leak, Jones (Burgess), Shrimpton, Woods, Jones (Rosenblatt), K Roberts, Rawlinson, F Roberts (Motley-Henry) Subs: Barlow, Kelly-Evans, Murray