Cooper urges Grubb to maintain high standards

Posted Sunday, January 21, 2018 by PA

Forest Green manager Mark Cooper has told former PE teacher Dayle Grubb he needs to keep his standards high after scoring twice in the 5-2 win over Cambridge.

The 26-year-old, who signed from non-league Weston-super-Mare earlier this month, netted in each half as his side clinched a crucial victory in the relegation battle.

Cambridge took the lead through George Maris only for Forest Green’s Christian Doidge to level with his 18th goal of the season.

Medy Elito regained the lead for the U’s after 25 minutes, getting to the byline before shooting into the opposite corner.

However, Grubb levelled before the break and then drove his second into the top corner after 74 minutes.

Doidge sealed the victory, capitalising on a goalkeeping error before debutant Tahvon Campbell made it five.

Cooper said: “Grubb has to now keep those standards and work hard as people will want to stop him getting into space and on the ball.

“He has worked really hard and is desperate to be a football player. Once you’re a goal scorer no matter what level you are a goal scorer and he’s done that and I don’t think that will change.

“I thought we played well for the whole game and the position that we’re in every time the ball goes into your box you get a bit anxious and apprehensive.

“They had four entries into our box in the first half and scored two goals which we need to address, apart from that we played really well.

“There are five or six teams now involved within striking distance and it’s important that we don’t worry too much about anybody else and keep doing what we did today.”

Cambridge manager Shaun Derry was less than happy with his sides’ performance.

He said: “It was a real strange game and I thought it was wide open in the first half, playing on the front foot and getting into some good areas.

“The goals we scored were good and well developed but the goals we conceded were terrible. We have been very good this season defensively and were expecting a clean sheet in the second half.

“The start of the second half we took the game to the opposition then the third goal was a bolt out of the blue and knocked us completely and we never recovered from it.

“We looked a shadow of what we have looked this season, we looked fragile and we looked ill-disciplined for the final 15 minutes and that concerns me, especially after the last five game where that isn’t what we have looked like.

“That final 15 minutes didn’t replicate what we have seen for large parts of this season.”