John can't update the desktop version of website at present due to a server problem, I've copied it here
Joint Press and Media Officer, John Edwards, spoke to manager Neil Young after Tuesday night's 1-1 draw with Crewe Alexandra. Here is the interview in full.
Q: Have you had the reaction you were looking for, in the last two games, after you voiced some misgivings at Trafford?
A: Yes, I'd say so. If you go back to the Trafford game, it was early on in pre-season, it was very hot and we were playing a system we hadn't used previously. If you notice what we are trying to do, it's to educate the players to cope with various systems. Against Manchester United on Friday night, it was a real test in terms of pressing and keeping the ball and being moved about, and the Crewe game was similar.
From what I saw, I'd say we have learned from Friday's game. There were some good performances, and it's also about some of the young lads appreciating that most of football is played in the head. The ability might be there from a technical point of view, but you have got to understand when to run, when to press, when not to press, and so on. These are things we are trying to teach the lads, but I have to say you can't knock the effort they are putting in. The work-rate of the players has been phenomenal.
Q: One thing you picked up on at Trafford was a lack of pressing, but there was plenty tonight, wasn't there?
A: We were up against a Crewe side who were pretty much all first-team players, so it was a great test and one we responded to really well. Young boys like Sam Heathcote and Harry Cain came on in the second half and made the most of their opportunity, which was great to see.
John Cyrus and Tom Hannigan (left) again looked the part in the centre of defence and the keeper (Andy Dawber) looked a lot better. We have put together a squad that is fairly young very quickly, and the boys who were already here are trying to learn different methods we are trying to implement in readiness for what is going to be a very tough league. But the pleasing thing for me is they are taking things on board, and what can't be knocked is their effort and attitude.
From what I have seen of Altrincham fans on previous occasions I've been here, the first thing they want is to see a lad putting the shirt on and giving everything they possibly can.
Q: Were you pleased for Andy Dawber after one or two uncertain moments in previous games, and will it have boosted his confidence to have made two or three impressive saves?
A: He is a young lad who's got the ability to do well for us, and I think we have maybe got carried away a bit with one or two Twitter posts and various things on social media and websites. People can be a little bit negative, and that breeds negativity. I have seen it before, and at the end of the day, people who bring players to the club have to be trusted to be able to do that.
We made a lot of decisions about players during the summer. We had to, because we couldn't keep the players who were here previously after the budget had been cut. Neither could we compete financially with other clubs in this division, so we have gone, to a large extent, for young lads. We've got some right and we've got some wrong. But what I can see out there is 18, 19, 20 players, or whatever it is, giving everything they've got.
Q: It's no surprise that Hannigan has made such a favourable impression, given his pedigree, but Cyrus (right) has really taken the eye. So has David Lynch, so does that suggest there is talent that can be unearthed from a lower level?
A: There's plenty out there. You've just got to find them, and a lot of hard work goes into that. It's not just me. There are people working for me who highlight these lads to me. That never stops. It is a continuous process. I've said all along, in terms of recruitment, the second lot you make are the most important. When you first come into a club, you've got players you have inherited and the budget may have changed. It's throughout that first season that the identification process goes on and you earmark what's required for the second season.
I'm very happy with what we've done so far, though there are probably two or three lads who are going to have to go out and learn their trade a bit more. It's no good them sitting on the bench here. They need to be playing football. It's more about the physical side, particularly lads who have come out of the League and not experienced this level before. They need to get some games, get roughed up a bit and rough a few people up themselves. That is the key.
Q: That's still the case, then, that it could be one or two going out and one or two more coming in?
A: Other clubs were in for certain players we wanted, and we had to go early to make sure we brought them to the Football Club, because anyone who knows about non-League football these days will know some of the wages being handed out are frightening. I'm not knocking it, though. If you've got it and better players are there, demanding that sort of money, you go and get them.
But we have to look at a different animal, in the way we do things. That involves a lot of recruitment and working with younger players, hopefully developing them and making them better.
Q: Would you say Cyrus and Lynch have exceeded expectations, given the clubs they were at before?
A: They've done very well, both of them, but I don't think I'd necessarily say that. It's quite difficult really, because some lads are actually better playing at a higher level, but that's the art of recruitment, in a way. You spot something that tells you they can step up to the plate, and these boys have done really well so far.
Sam Patterson has been excellent as well, whether at right-back or left-back. We took him from Bradford Park Avenue, and he has stepped up really well. All managers are trying to unearth something a bit special, but, likewise, we want to be seen as a football club trying to develop lads and give players from lower down a chance at our level. Like any club, even those at the very top, we will get some right and some wrong.
Q: With the start of the season just round the corner, do you feel the squad is in good shape?
A: I think we are still short in one or two areas to start the season. I would like to think we will get at least one, if not two, in before the Darlington game. We are talking all the time to League clubs about loans. I speak to managers in our league a lot, and the league above, and they are all saying the same, that there's not a lot out there. So we are probably going to have to look at the loan system, which I don't mind, because you usually find the lads in question are training every day and are fit.
Q: Any thoughts on the captaincy, while Shaun Densmore continues his recovery from injury?
A: Not at the moment, in terms of actually deciding, though there are plenty of candidates. It will be a senior player, and there are four or five who would be well suited. I've got an idea in my head for captain and vice-captain, but it depends on what we decide on, team-wise. You look at the likes of Alan Goodall, Tom Hannigan, Damian Reeves and Jake Moult, and they are all players who have seen it and done it. I'll take a view on it probably next week.
Q: Clearly David Lynch (right) isn't ready for that sort of responsibility yet, but he does seem to have leadership qualities, doesn't he?
A: He is a talker, all right. He demands off others, but I wouldn't want to put undue pressure on him so soon after coming up two or three levels. We are still trying to get him ingrained in what we are trying to do, so he doesn't need any added pressure at the moment. But the lads I've mentioned would take it in their stride. They have it in their make-up to do the job, whereas I want to take the shackles off the younger lads and let them go out and enjoy their football and keep learning.
Q: Finally, how close are you to deciding on your starting XI for the Darlington game?
A: I've got a good idea, but it still depends, to an extent, what shape we decide to go with. We probably need to bring in one player before Darlington, so that's another factor to consider. But I'm getting close..