Graeme Jones crowed that it’s ‘game on’ for Luton Town’s great escape bid after a magnificent 1-0 win at Middlesbrough edged them to within four points of Championship safety.
Ryan Tunnicliffe scored his first ever goal for the Hatters to register a second straight win in the league, and their second successive clean sheet victory, in a deserved result at the Riverside Stadium.
Seven days ago, after a 1-0 home defeat to Cardiff City, Town were cut adrift at the foot of the table by ten points, but now they have a huge chance to perform a great escape – not that Jones ever had any doubts.
“(We’re) right in the ball game,” he said, adding: “Somebody came in (the dressing room) and said, ‘What did Wigan do? What did so-and-so do?’ I’m not interested. It’s about us winning football matches and it’s game on.
“It’s very different when the momentum is going that way (gesturing upwards) than when it’s coming that way (downwards). I said to you that when we had everybody fit, we’d be competitive, and that’s what’s happened. Brentford away has hurt us a lot. Hurt us a lot. But we’ve kept level-headed as a club. We’ve recovered from it, and let’s see where it takes us.”
The Town chief has been praising his side’s performances for weeks, often in the absence of positive results, and after the triumph at the Riverside Stadium, he said: “I feel like it’s been coming.
“I think I look an absolute idiot sometimes when I speak at Nottingham Forest after a 3-1 defeat and 2-0 at West Brom and say I’m pleased with the level of performance, pleased with the control off and on the ball. I think we saw a result of those performances today at Middlesbrough.”
Tunnicliffe was booed off last Saturday when he was substituted, but his goal completed a pleasing personal week in which he also excelled against Sheffield Wednesday.
Jones said: “I believe in Ryan. You get to know people and he’s certainly got the talent. He’s certainly got the mentality. He’s got the experience for this level. For me, he’s been there from minute one.
“Not always great, not always bad, but he gives us a level. He’s performances have probably mirrored the team’s performance at times, in terms of getting to know the league, getting experience in the league, because you can’t do it on your own. But I believe in him and it was another really solid performance from him today.”
Jones made four changes to face Middlesbrough, leaving out four of the star performers that got the midweek victory against Sheffield, as James Bree, Izzy Brown and Glen Rea were all benched, while Harry Cornick missed out with a hamstring injury.
Jones said: “There is always a plan and sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t. I’ve got a group of players that I believe in. I’ve got a group of players that understand that in these three-game weeks, everyone wants to play but you need everybody. I don’t care about making decisions. That’s what I’m paid to do.
“I think I work hard enough to make a measured decision. If you’re guessing, then you won’t get football results. It’s the first time I’ve had everybody available, apart from losing Harry Cornick a little bit with his hamstring.
“So, I’m really satisfied, but remember that the players have to come in and perform and you think about Cameron (Carter-Vickers) coming in. I know I got heavily criticised for leaving him out and we got a clean sheet on Wednesday night.
“Then you think about Matty (Pearson) playing right-back, think about Martin Cranie’s level – I’ve said for a long, long time, how much we miss Martin. Glen’s contribution over recent weeks has been magnificent.
“Then you think about Luke Berry, Kaz (LuaLua) and that’s the definition of a team. That’s the definition of a squad. People are coming in, prepared to contribute. That’s all I spoke about at this football club at the beginning, and that’s where we are at the minute.”
