Still expects title challenge from FGR but declares Town have already passed a bigger test

Saturday’s opponents Forest Green Rovers will be up there challenging for the Skrill Premier title at the end of the season according to Hatters boss John Still, writes Mark Wood.
John Still - ltfc v SouthportJohn Still - ltfc v Southport
John Still - ltfc v Southport

The two teams are tied on four points after bother recording one win, one draw and one defeat from their opening three games.

On whether Rovers would be competing for top spot, Still said: “I think their manager’s probably having this conversation at his place isn’t he? How many points have they got?

“I would think that they would expect to be a challenger, absolutely. I think they would expect to be a challenger, they’ve invested heavily and have some good players.

“I would think that they would be a team that is going to be somewhere in and around it. And they’re probably sitting there answering the question, do you think Luton will be there or there around it? And they’re probably going you would think so, but this is football and no-one knows.

“But yeah you would expect they would be somewhere in or around it, but before I came here I went to watch a Conference game and someone said to me that he felt – it was early in the season – but Forest Green would win promotion this year. And they didn’t last year, so who knows in football?”

And while Still believes that FGR might boast the best team Town have yet played, he somewhat surprisingly doesn’t believe it is the biggest test for his team.

Still continued: “We’ve had a tougher test. I think one of the games we’ve had this year was actually a tougher test I do, I think it was. I think our first home game was a tougher test.

“A tougher team? Maybe. But a tougher test I don’t know. Honestly football now’s changed, the game has changed drastically it really has. If you look at all of the money that Chelsea have invested and what Aston Villa have invested. You could have tossed a coin between those two teams last night.

“The game has changed. Seriously, the game has changed drastically now and I think teams are closer together now than perhaps they ever were, I really do. I think teams are closer together.”

It starts a daunting run of five games which continues with the visit of dark horses Cambridge United on Monday, followed by matches against all three of the teams left disappointed from last season’s play-offs.

And while they may make a couple of changes for Monday’s game, Still is confident his players should be fit enough to play two games in three days, adding: “The players should have no problems playing twice over the weekend, they should have no problem with that at all. That doesn’t mean to say we wouldn’t make a little change here and there, but the players shouldn’t have any problem in fulfilling that I don’t think so.”

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