It’s certainly been a Happy Munday for St. Ives Town.
Since signing teenage front-runner, George Munday, on loan from Cambridge United at the beginning of February, the Pitching In Southern League Premier Central outfit have embarked upon a run of seven League games without defeat.
Having scored the winner on his debut, Munday has gone on to bag six goals, including a dramatic late brace at the weekend to secure an impressive 3-2 victory at Kettering Town.
The impact of youngster is being felt throughout the team.
“George has been outstanding,” popular goalkeeper, Dan Wilks told us. “He’s still a teenager and learning his trade, but since joining, he’s led the line like a seasoned pro - converting when called upon and making a real difference for us.
“He’s a young striker with all-around ability, versatile footwork, excellent hold-up play and the pace to get in behind. Initially, I was really impressed with his work-rate and his determination not to give up on lost causes, which has always benefited us.
“If he continues on this path, he will be an asset to any club, but we are able to reap the benefits at the moment.”
Wilks is also a player who learned his trade within the professional ranks having been with Watford before heading north of the border to join St. Mirren.
He then served Colchester United before embarking upon a successful career in the non-League game with the likes of Welling United, Dartford and Billericay Town, for whom he kept 18 clean sheets last season before joining St. Ives Town ahead of the current campaign.
Establishing himself between the posts, Wilks has watched the team grow as the season has progressed.
“At the start of the season we were naïve and didn’t know how to close out games or stay in them to give ourselves a chance of earning a point or three,” he admitted. “After a tough spell over the festive period, things have started to click into place since then and we’ve become hard to beat.
“The Gaffer has always supported us and believed that we could come out the other side and so it has proved.
“With a few tweaks here and there, we’ve become a much tougher team to face, both defensively and in terms of character when it comes to making comebacks.
“We’ve drawn a lot of games recently, but as the saying goes, if you don’t win, you don’t lose and we’ve managed to do that.
“We’re a very young side, which can be our undoing at times, but there is so much talent and ability throughout the team. I’d like to think that I’ve brought some stability and experience from the back – organising, managing the game and being there when called upon, whether by making saves or controlling the box and the space behind the back-line.
“This is my first season playing in this League, and it’s exactly what I expected; physical, with a ‘whatever it takes to win’ mentality. It’s less about tippy-tappy football and more about doing what’s necessary to win. I’ve played in teams where we’ve tried to play pretty but haven’t been effective; in this league, it’s all about being effective to win.
“It’s as unpredictable as any League I’ve played in. No team has been the same the second time we’ve faced them, and no team has managed to do the double over us, which is something to take pride in.
“We’re unbeaten in our last seven games, and now we just need to convert those draws into wins to secure our spot for next season.”
Saturday saw a big three points secured from a game at promotion-chasing Kettering Town where they were 2-1 down going into the final five minutes, but spectacularly turned things around to leave with a 3-2 victory.
“With the odds stacked against us, it was an unexpected win that caught everyone by surprise,” Wilks admitted. “We had a game plan, and I think we stuck to it in the first half, executing it to a tee.
“In the second half, we expected a reaction from them, and that’s exactly what we got. Kettering came out of the traps quickly and hit us with two goals. We didn’t suppress their attack, and we paid the price.
“The Gaffer mentioned before the game that, after failing to capitalise on a two-goal lead in our previous game against AFC Telford United, scoring two goals isn’t always enough against these big teams.
“We knew we’d need to score at least three goals. When we went 2-1 down, and with the clock ticking down, I think they believed they had done enough to win the game, but with changes on both sides, we made ours count. They failed to defend their box twice, and we punished them.
“It was an important three points to keep us away from those relegation spots and keep us in touch with the middle of the table pack. Our focus now remains on keeping this unbeaten run going and converting some of the draws into wins.
“If we can do that, we’ll be fine to secure our Step 3 status for another season, which is the main aim. We’ve also got the chance of silverware in the Hunts Challenge Cup – finishing any season with silverware is always a bonus, so we’ll look forward to that.”
A home game against a Bromsgrove Sporting outfit that sit just two places and two points below them in on the agenda for Saturday.
IMAGE: St. Ives Town FC
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