AFC Fylde midfield man wants maximum return

AFC Fylde midfielder Lewis Montrose insists his side must take maximum points from the upcoming Easter double-header.
AFC Fylde midfielder Lewis Montrose is targeting six points over Easter     Picture: Steve McLellanAFC Fylde midfielder Lewis Montrose is targeting six points over Easter     Picture: Steve McLellan
AFC Fylde midfielder Lewis Montrose is targeting six points over Easter Picture: Steve McLellan

The Coasters have surpassed expectations during their debut National League season, challenging at the top end of the table for a play-off spot.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

However, Saturday’s defeat at Dagenham and Redbridge leaves Dave Challinor’s troops in eighth place, five points adrift of the play-off places.

Next up, Fylde host FC Halifax Town on Good Friday before travelling to Barrow on Easter Monday.

With six points on offer, Montrose is eager to get two victories on the board with games running out in their quest to achieve Football League status.

Montrose said: “Sometimes you can take positives from a defeat but there weren’t many on Saturday.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

“Dagenham is a tough place to go and they are a very good team, particularly on the day.

“Ultimately, we wanted to win the game – we needed to win the game – and we didn’t.

“Perhaps we could have been more solid and tried to grind out a point as a worst case scenario but we can do little about it now.

“We have to move onto the next one now and make sure that we take maximum points on Friday against Halifax.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

“This weekend gives us a great chance to get back on track and they are both most definitely ‘must win’ games.

“The games are running out and we need to get as many points as possible to ensure that we finish in those play-off places.”

Montrose has been a mainstay in the Coasters side since his summer switch from Stockport County.

While the club is in the hunt for a top-seven finish, Montrose is reserving judgement on what constitutes success until May.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Montrose added: “We have had a good season but personally I will judge how well we have done on whether we are in the play-offs or not.”

Meanwhile, full-back Zaine Francis-Angol is back in contention for the Coasters after returning from international duty with Antigua and Barbuda.

The 24-year-old, who missed the trip to Dagenham, started both friendlies for his country as they beat Bermuda 3-2 and earned a credible 1-1 draw against Jamaica on Sunday night ahead of the CONCACAF League of Nations tournament in September.