Foster Wants Top Four for Christmas

Gillingham Town manager Adrian Foster wants to celebrate Christmas with his team firmly entrenched in the.....

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Published 1st December 2012

Adrian Foster

....Toolstation Western League Premier Division's top four.

Following last weekend`s washout, the Dorset outfit travel to basement boys Barnstaple Town today ahead of clashes with Radstock Town, Bridport and Winterbourne United before the year is out.

Foster has regularly stated his promotion ambition and said staying comfortably in touch with the top flight's fellow high-flyers was top of his festive wish list. He said: "The aim is to finish the year on a high. We have had a couple of losses recently and those weren't nice but every game we go into with the aim of picking up three points. We have got a full squad available and to be honest we have been unlucky. We have created a lot of chances and played really well but not had the rub of the green.

"The fixtures don't look tough but they will be difficult games. This league is slightly harder and more physical to Division One last season and we have lost games, but teams around us will also lose so we have got to make the most of that.

"Every season I go into I say we want to win the league and if my ambitions were any different there would be no point in doing it. We have to think positive and whether it's realistic or not I want to win the league and I want the lads to be thinking that. Some results haven't gone our way, which is disappointing but I still want to be in the top three or four by Christmas."

Experienced former Eastwood Town striker Peter Knox signed for Gills earlier this month, with Foster admitting he might not be the last new face through the door at Hardings Lane as he looks to boost numbers further.

"Knoxy came to us and got my number off the website," said Foster. "He said he was moving to Gillingham and wanted to sign, and after speaking to a few people it soon became apparent he would be a good signing. He's strong and puts himself about.

"I have got Ben Thomson back as well and if you haven't got that competition then you can get complacent. By bringing in new boys it does keep those already here on their toes. We could do with a big and strong player and possibly a destroyer up front in this league, but I am really happy with what we are doing and our current position."

The former West Bromwich Albion and Yeovil Town front man suggested he may look to fine-tune his team's approach to games as they continue to combat the physical nature of the Premier Division. Gills have won eight and lost six games so far this season, drawing just once.

Foster said: "We go out to win every game and for some of those losses we would have liked to have taken a point.

"Some of the games we lost, a draw would have been a fair result. I don't know what it is, but we only seem to win or lose.

"This season we are still playing as much good football as possible and maybe we are trying to play too much, which is where we are getting caught. The teams in this division do hit it forward quicker.

"Maybe we need to shuffle around a bit and work on not conceding. But I like playing attacking football and we will continue to play what we think is the right way."

[Source: Western Gazette]