Still warns squad they face a shock over the summer

The manager has been in charge for 10 games so far, heralding just two wins, but knows his job really starts once the campaign is finally over.

Still said: “Most of the players here don’t really know me. I’ve come in and allowed them to develop in their own way.

“I’ve pointed them in a little direction. I’ve done little bits of work to see if they can take it on board, then I’ve stood back to see what they can pick up, how strong they are mentally, how hungry they are.

“I didn’t want to camouflage anything. I didn’t want to see false hope and then it fade away in the future.

“I wanted them stand on their own two feet. I didn’t want to throw a hand grenade in.

“When they all come in for pre-season training, they’re going to have a shock because that is then when we go to proper work.

“You come in and you can’t influence everybody. It’s important for me to find out the character and strength and weaknesses of everybody.

“Having had a couple of games watched and seeing for myself at Braintree, where we had to get to, I was fully aware (of the challenge and I know in my mind the way we have to go 100 per cent.

“We have to make lots of changes, that’s what I felt and the ones that are still here are fortunate that they still have an opportunity.

“They haven’t got long to grasp that opportunity if that’s what they want and think this is for them.”

Although Town’s form hasn’t picked up under the new manager, as Luton’s slim play-off hopes have evaporated and they were hammered 5-1 at Gateshead on Saturday, Still firmly believes they will be on the right path eventually.

He said: “It’s very easy for me to say and not so easy for other people to understand, but I know where we are.

“I had two match reports from before I even came to Luton on players I was looking at and we always get reports on the other team.

“So I came here and perhaps knowing a little bit more purely by cirumstance. I don’t think anyone needs to be the brain of Britain to know that all wasn’t well for a little while.

“I don’t bring a magic wand, I bring what I bring, I know how to bring it all together. What I don’t know is how long it takes.

“We have taken small steps and are in the process of doing that. The darkest hour is just before dawn, it always is.

“Sometimes things don’t look great and they don’t look great now, but we haven’t really changed anything yet.

“We’ve brought in (Solomon) Taiwo, (Scott) Griffiths, Alex (Wall), but have made the squad weaker by moving people on.

“There are plans in place to make it all strong and that for me is the biggest thing and most exciting and challenging thing that I’m looking forward too.”

Still is looking to sign players with the right mental attitude too as he added: “I haven’t got to change players mentalities, I’ve got to bring players in with the right mentality.

“You do your homework on them and find out about them, it’s what you do.

“Some people are in the middle and they can be pulled on with mentally strong people or pulled the other way with mentally weak people.

“It’s a skill. Skills or not just passing, crossing, skills are a mental thing as well and you can improve and work on them.

“When they’re working with mentally strong people, and they feel the power of it, they get hooked on to it.

“If they’re with players that are not like that, they can stay the same and maybe start to wane.

“In a football team, you need mentally strong people and it’s not any more important in any league.

“I have this thing about boys and men, you can be 19 and a man, and 25 and a boy, it’s nothing to do with age.”

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