Hitchin Town Football Club
Founded 1865, Reformed 1928
Salton and Gillard baffled by collapse
Friday, May 11 2007
Hitchin's management team of Darren Salton and Ken Gillard admitted to the club's fans that they were "baffled" by their side's collapse in the second half of the season.
Speaking at the latest Supporters Trust Forum, Salton said: “We still don’t know what happened. If we had a simple answer, we would not be managing at this level.”
But the former Luton Town duo admitted that they had identified a drop in commitment after the turn of the year. “There were players who were not doing it for us and that’s why we decided to let some go and turn things over,” said Gillard. "And I think at the end of the season, we saw an improvement.”
There were no bold predictions from Salton, only to secure safety as early as possible next season. “We want to improve the team and we think with three or four new faces we can be a good side,” added Gillard.
Salton and Gillard both look back upon 2006-07 as part of a steep learning curve in management. “We will definitely learn from the experience and be better prepared next season,” said Salton.
Both felt that the key to success in the BGB Southern League was to have a well organised and committed team. “The sort of commitment the lads displayed in the last few weeks,” said Gillard.