Coach Freeman Amponsah’s Pre- Sea Lions FC press chat took place at Madina Astroturf on Friday morning, and you can read every word from the boss below.
He was asked for the latest team news, about our response to defeat with Faith Ladies FC, looking to bounce back against Sea Lion FC and more.
Here is everything he had to say on the following subjects…
on Regina Donkor’s availability:
Let’s see. We have another session and call today to see how she is fairing where she is healing and obviously, she’s been out for many, many weeks now and we need to really nail the timing and when she has enough in the tank to compete, but I think she’s very close.
on our other injured players:
It’s the same with Martha Appiah as well after our friendly with the Black Queens, she’s done a few things to keep her fit but we yet to receive updates from the Physio. Rahinatu is not far at all, and Hellen is still a little bit more, but she played against Black queens so let’s see.
on how the squad have reacted to the Faith Ladies loss:
What I see is a team that can’t wait to play Sea Lions FC at an away now. Though we didnt win, we had a beautiful noon of football in front of our people. The task is very clear that we will bounce back.
on how we need to bounce back straight away:
That’s it, Faith Ladies FC is gone. We discussed it and we know the things that we did very well and the things that we have to improve. It tells you again about the small margins in the Malta Guinness Premier League. It’s clear but we cannot lose sight of where we are, what we are doing and the importance of the match tomorrow and the full energy and focus is there.
on wanting a similar reaction to when we lost but beat Police Ladies a week later:
That is the reaction that we need. We want to create an atmosphere in the Nduom stadium from the beginning and I ask everybody to go there tomorrow with full energy. We are in a really good moment in the Malta Guinness Premier League, and we want to continue to be there, and tomorrow’s game is vital to achieve that.
on whether he wants a similar atmosphere to the Police Ladies home game:
I always want better! I want the team to play better, the fans who will be there to even more energetic with us in every single ball and that’s what we have to be tomorrow though it is going to be an away match.
on whether the post-match celebrations will be similar with a win:
I don’t know if that’ll be outside or inside the dressing room, but let’s win first.
on if there is unfinished business against Sea Lion FC:
With every club there is always a history. There is always what happened before, what is going to happen next. We know the importance of the game we just focus on what we have to do.
on the difference in us compared to our previous game against Sea Lions FC at Home:
We will see tomorrow, them as well have changed a little bit and might have some players who are not available, the same for us. So, let’s see, every game is very different and the approach sometimes away and home can change.
on Sea Lions FC’s approach to the game:
I don’t know, normally they have a very different approach, especially when they don’t have the ball. So it’s two very different set ups (compared to Faith Ladies FC).
on using the Faith Ladies FC defeat for extra motivation:
What happened with another team is another competition, but what you cannot deny is what is in your tummy after a defeat. We have to use it in a really powerful way to be better.
on Hellen Kutsanedzi and if she will be part of the squad and team:
I really hope so, she has being doing really well, she’s been around some old players on the pitch who are really helping her understand our style of play and we need to see how that evolves, her confidence levels, her fitness levels and hopefully then the answer is ‘yes’.
on the shape of our squad fitness wise:
Obviously we have missed some big players and we still are but you have to adapt to that. Hopefully we want them back, we need them back as quickly as possible, and we know the impact those players are going to have when we have the full squad back.
on answering critics about needing a goalscorer:
No, I think it shows that the team has the ability to score goals and to share the goals and that we have to be consistently, and that’s the demands at the end of the season, you’re going to have to score certain amount of goals and not concede a certain amount of goals in order to have the best chance to win titles. And that’s undeniable.
on why Sea Lions FC are a tough team to beat:
Well, they are a really good team though things are not better for them this season. They are very well coached; they have fantastic players. They have great spirit within the team and they are difficult to beat for us and for many, many opponents.
on his satisfaction with the current position of the team:
Well, I think we are in a really good position, and we are what we want to be. I don’t know if we can be better, as I said before, I think the most important thing is that we continue to believe to perform at the level that we are doing and we have the squad available. And if we have those two things, we’re going to give them a real go.
on whether the team needs that edge to develop as players:
Yes, we certainly can develop a lot of things and those experiences are really relevant to judge whether we were or we weren’t, just because of a goal, I don’t think it’s that fair, and I was very clear with them about it because I believe that they did a lot of things right. Managing games and things like that we can still improve, but in a year’s time, for sure we can improve, and we can improve in our build-up phase and we can improve in our restarts and we can improve in many areas.
on how you coach players’ attitude on the pitch:
That’s the thing that has to be developed if you don’t have it, that’s for sure. Because the best teams, the best players, they have that.
on what the team can learn from the Faith Ladies FC game:
We have to learn but as well we need the game to be managed in the right way and that’s not for us to do, that’s for the referees to do. We leave it for them because it’s obvious what happened on Saturday, and we have to deal with that, and we have to be ready for that but in the end it’s their job and they have to manage that.
on how much emotional energy is left in the tank:
A lot because I think a lot of players haven’t played significant minutes this season and important players as well, so I can sense that there are still five or six who have a lot of effort for the team, and the other ones because, after what happened last year, we want to make sure that this season is very different and that brings a lot of energy because we know what we are facing.
on if players off the bench more of a part will have to play:
Yes, but we have made changes in the last few games and every game is different in relation to what is happening. Rightly or wrongly, results in the end decide those decisions. We try to make the right call, that’s it.
on how different it feels approaching the run-in compared to last season:
I feel a lot of excitement especially internally because we’re right in the mix and we want to continue to be there and have a fantastic game to play. Externally probably it’s different because the expectations are focused much more on the other two teams and that’s it.
.
READ ALSO:
Hellen Kutsanedzi Signs for Berry Ladies Fc
.
Copyright 2024 Berry Ladies Football Club. Permission to use quotations from this article is granted subject to appropriate credit being given to www.berryladiesfcgh.com as the source.
