Dean Keates: "It's Nowhere Near Done" Dean Keates: "It's Nowhere Near Done"
Posted by: Bescot Banter

Dean Keates: "It's Nowhere Near Done"

Walsall manager Dean Keates has spoken to the press following Saturday's much-needed victory over Northampton Town and praised his side for their committed display before insisting his side will be ready for Tuesday's clash with Bradford City.
The manager, who saw his side secure three crucial points thanks to George Dobson's injury time winner, insisted that it is important to not get carried away as despite the result putting the side three points clear of the drop zone they still need a point to secure safety.

Dean, who was speaking via the Express & Star, said; "The emotions were sky high after Northampton and we’ve got to bring them back down to earth because we’ve got a massive game at Bradford tomorrow. It’s our game in hand and come 10pm on Tuesday, we can be a guaranteed League One football club.

"That is what we are looking to do. It’s another big game so I have got to bring the players back down because it's nowhere near done. It’s my job to let reality kick back in. We let them enjoy Sunday. But today is all about having a chat and looking at what we could have done better against Northampton. We will make sure we are ready for Bradford."

The gaffer then went on to praise his side for their commitment as they kept on pushing to secure the much-needed win which puts them in the driving seat as they look to secure a spot in the third tier for at least another season, he continued; "Everybody knows what was at stake so to score at that time – it's added euphoria going through your body. It was then a case of getting a message onto the pitch for the lads to remain calm and compact because we were going to be put under pressure for those last two minutes.

"It was important we stayed calm to make the right decisions. There has been a lot of criticism of the team and I can’t really speak about before I arrived. But since I’ve been here the lads have given everything and they did that against Northampton. Some of the blocks they got in were great. We were compact, and I thought we broke well in the second half. We got bodies forward and could have taken a few more of our opportunities."
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