SPORTING CLUB INKBERROW | MAKING A STATEMENT

It was a night to remember for Gabriel Bajrami and his team-mates

There was a statement first-ever Step 4 victory for Sporting Club Inkberrow on Tuesday evening.

Playing in their first home game of the season in the Pitching In Southern League Division One South, the Worcestershire outfit ran out 1-0 winners against the much-fancied Swindon Supermarine.

Like most of his team-mates, goalkeeper, Gabriel Bajrami, has quickly climbed the levels. Just two years ago he was playing Step 8 football until The Berrow took a chance on him last season and it’s fair to say that both he and the club haven’t looked back since.

“I am looking forward to testing myself at this level and I know that I have much more to give,” he told us. “It was a great feeling to walk off the pitch on Tuesday with a first win and clean sheet. Everyone wants to get that first victory under their belt and hopefully it will be the first of many.

“The boys showed great character and resilience; we worked extremely hard for each other and managed the game well when we came under pressure. As for myself, I thought that I did enough; I did what I needed to do in order to make sure we saw the game out and secure the three points.

“It was the ideal way to respond to our defeat on the opening day of the season and now we’ll look to build upon it.

“The result definitely sends out a strong statement of intent. I don’t see why we can’t have ambitions to be up there amongst the leading pack. We have shown in each of the two opening games that we can compete at this level; it’s up to us whether we can maintain this, but I’m sure we can.

“There are no easy games at this level and each week we will have to be right at it. But we’re a club that has achieved back-to-back promotions and as such have developed a winning habit. Coming into a new League is nothing different for most of these boys and we can most definitely compete in this company.

“We just need to stay focussed and keep improving with each game. We need to be organised and difficult to break down. We work well together as a team and that togetherness will win us games, as it did on Tuesday.

“It’s all about consistency and my personal target is to beat last season’s clean sheet tally, which I believe was 16 in all competitions. I want to be more reliable and help my team at key moments in games.

“There is a lot more to come from us.”

Having already created history in the Emirates FA Cup this season with their first-ever victory, a replay triumph over Studley in the Extra Preliminary Round, they now prepare to head to Sporting Khalsa of the Pitching In Northern Premier League West Division at the weekend.

IMAGE: SC Inkberrow

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