THEY may be rooted to the bottom of League I, but Cheltenham Town arrive at the Galpharm Stadium on Saturday in their best shape for months.
Victory over Hartlepool at Whaddon Road last Saturday brought to an end a 16-match run without a victory – their previous win had come back on December 13 when they won 2-1 at Leyton Orient.
That run included a run of seven consecutive defeats, but Martin Allen’s side have responded well over the last seven days and added a second success on Tuesday night when skipper David Bird scored to secure a 1-0 home win over Tranmere Rovers.
Boss Allen, who was a contender for the vacant hot-seat at the Galpharm, was delighted with the win over a side who proved too strong for Town last weekend at Prenton Park – Rovers winning 3-1.
“It was a fantastic result, it was great to see Whaddon Road rocking,” said Allen.
“It wasn’t pretty in the second half, but we did keep another clean sheet and threatened at the other end.”
While the Robins’ revival may have come too late for them to avoid relegation, the former Brentford and Leicester City boss – who has took the reins at Cheltenham on December 15 – was gratified that his team have bounced back despite a long list of injuries.
“Earlier this week I had only eight players train and we only had 12 Fit professionals for Tuesday night,” explained Allen, who hasn’t given up hopes of finding an escape route.
“We had two 17-year-olds and an 18-year-old in the 16 for Tranmere, so it was a good all-round performance by the team and the squad.
“I said after Saturday’s win that strange things happen in football and a miracle could happen!
“But we still have a lot of injuries and some good players have gone, but in a strange way that seems to have galvanised the team.
“The young players are creating a good atmosphere and have added a different dimension to training.
“And the players are now getting their reward for hard work done on the training ground and there are a lot of games to go, so we just have to keep going.
“We have players who will come back to fitness over the next week, but at the moment I just want the players to enjoy winning games again.”
The Robins’ sick list currently includes defenders Shane Duff (Achilles) and Alan Wright (calf), midfielder John Finnigan (ankle), long term absentees defender Gavin Caines (knee) and Reading loanee midfielder Michail Antonio, while strikers Paul Connor, Elvis Hammond and Damian Spencer are all battling to be fit for Saturday.
