David Artell says Town produced a dominant performance as they extended their unbeaten start to the Sky Bet League Two season with a 2-0 victory over Bristol Rovers at Blundell Park.
The Mariners produced an impressive display against the league leaders, with Kieran Green opening the scoring before Géza Dávid Turi doubled Town’s advantage with a spectacular strike from distance.
Artell was delighted with the way his side handled Rovers’ physical and direct approach, as Town limited the visitors to very few opportunities and could have added further goals to their tally.
The Head Coach also praised Turi for his outstanding goal, discussed the impact of the new arrivals and stressed the importance of keeping the whole squad ready as Town prepare for a busy run of fixtures.
Here’s everything Artell had to say after Saturday’s victory…
On a comprehensive victory
Artell was delighted with Town’s performance against a Rovers side that arrived at Blundell Park with the best attacking and defensive records in League Two.
“I thought it was a really good win. I know they’re all good wins, but we’ve limited the team with the best attacking stats and the best defensive stats before today.
“I can’t remember them having a chance. And we should have scored more.
“It was as comprehensive a 2-0 as you’re going to get against a good team.
“You know, Steve’s a good manager. He has them playing a certain way, we know that. I thought we were dominant in every area of the pitch, both positionally and tactically.
“I thought it was, like I said, as comprehensive a 2-0 as you’re going to get.”
On matching Rovers’ approach
Artell felt Town’s ability to understand and counter Rovers’ style was key to the victory, with the Mariners refusing to be drawn into a physical battle and instead allowing their football to come to the fore.
“I thought understanding that they’re effective at what they do and countering that.
“It’s not easy to play against Bristol Rovers. They’ll win plenty of games of football. They already have.
“We knew if we matched their blood and thunder, Steve described his team as blood and thunder and a running team, then we’d hope our football would come to the fore.
“And it did.
“I thought we were dominant in every facet of the game.”
On Town’s two goals
Green opened the scoring after capitalising on an Andy Cook flick-on, while Turi produced a stunning 30-yard strike to give Town a two-goal cushion before half-time.
Artell was pleased to see two very different goals reward his side’s performance.
“Different goals. One was direct football, which is probably unlike us.
“The second was an outstanding bit of skill. I probably had the best view of the house. I was right behind it.
“And it’s the most pleasing thing for me is we’ve been practising, we’ve been telling him to practice to shoot with power.
“He’s got a lovely side-foot finish from sort of 18 yards. He doesn’t tend to hit them like that.
“One of the staff said, ‘I didn’t realise he could hit that hard.’
“Well, it’s pleasing that the work we’ve done in the last three or four weeks – we didn’t do much in pre-season with him, but since the season started – that technique has come out today.”
On Géza Turi’s performance
Turi not only scored a spectacular goal but was one of several players Artell praised for their contribution to the victory.
“I thought he was magnificent. I thought they were all very good.
“I thought, to a man, we were very good today.
“All certainly above average, that’s for sure. We didn’t have any bad performers, whether that’s the lads who started or the lads that finished the game.
“So, pleasing all round.”
Despite Turi expressing his disappointment at not adding another goal after the final whistle, Artell believes the midfielder’s overall contribution was excellent.
“He should have scored on the counter-attack, blazing over the bar from four yards.
“Like I said, we should have scored more.
“Iwan had a great chance to slip Fin Cartwright in and he takes a shot.
“There’s a couple of the chances. We should have scored more.
“We had a stonewall penalty first half. An absolute stonewall penalty, but it didn’t get given.
“But yeah, it was, like I say, as comprehensive a 2-0 win as you’re going to get all season.”
On the red card
Tommy Leigh was sent off in the second half after an off-the-ball incident involving Mark Shelton.
Artell praised the referee for spotting the incident but felt Town would have gone on to win regardless.
“The lad stamped on him.
“I thought the referee had a good game because they come to try and kick lumps out of us. That’s what I felt. But that’s not a criticism. That’s just how it is.
“Steve gets his teams riled for it and you’ve got to stand up to that.
“You’ve got to make sure you don’t react to that and you’ve got to make sure that you beat it with skill, with pace, with running, with all those things that you need.
“The amount of times they pulled us or tripped us up off the ball was a lot. And then, because they’re getting frustrated, the lad just stamps on him.
“It’s just a ridiculous decision. He was already on a booking as well.
“I’m glad the referee saw it. It helped us see out the game.
“I still think we’d have won without the red card.”
On whether it was a statement win
Town extended their unbeaten start to six league games with the victory, but Artell is refusing to get carried away with the early-season table.
“Let’s see where we are after 16, 26, 36, 46. They’re the markers.
“I couldn’t even tell you where we were in the table before that. Can’t tell you where we are now. It’ll change, I’m sure, by five o’clock.
“I don’t even look at the table until 10 games, and even then it’s sort of like, ‘Oh, where are we?’
“We’re more interested in our game model and the trends in our game model, and six games isn’t a particularly high number. So, it’s not necessarily reliable data at the minute.
“Ten games, getting there. Fifteen games will be reliable.
“And then we’ll keep an eye on all that, so we know where to work and what areas of the game we need to work on.
“The table doesn’t tell us that.”
On keeping the whole squad ready
With a busy schedule ahead, Artell stressed the importance of keeping every member of the squad engaged and ready to contribute.
“We’ve got another game here next week, and it’s Crawley, before the EFL Trophy, and then we’ve got to make sure that everyone stays engaged, because we’re going to need everyone.
“I’ve said that to everyone.
“Jamie Walker hasn’t got on the pitch for the last two games. He’s a brilliant player. We didn’t need him in the last two games, but we definitely need him.
“For example, when there’s lads coming back in the next two, three, four weeks from injury, we’ve got to make sure they’re up to speed.
“Because when we play like that, and we’ve got that level, they’ve got to hit those levels.
“That’s what was required. And that’s what we want to achieve.”
On the impact of the new arrivals
Finlay Cartwright and Mark Shelton both experienced the Blundell Park atmosphere, while Sonny Finch continued to impress as he adapts to Town’s style.
Artell was pleased with the contribution of the new arrivals and believes there is plenty more to come as they settle into the squad.
“Ryley sees it, Fin sees it, Shelts sees it.
“I thought Fin’s going to be an outstanding player. He’ll go a long way.
“I thought Ryley was very good. They were both very good last week at Cheltenham. Helped us get a point.
“Shelts is Shelts. It’s his birthday today, so it’s not a bad birthday present for him.
“We’re going to need him.”
Artell also praised Finch’s continued development since arriving at Blundell Park.
“I thought Sonny Finch is getting better every game.
“He’s getting more used to us and how we play and what we want from him.
“I thought he was very good today.
“Iwan when he came on was threatening. Probably should have scored a goal and had an assist.”
On giving new players time to settle
Artell believes patience is important as Town’s summer signings continue to adapt to a new club, new teammates and a different style of football.
“This is really exciting. It’s going to take time.
“Different players, different stages.
“You’ve got to remember, not last year, the year before, it took Jason Svanthorsson probably six months to settle in. Albeit that’s a cultural thing and a football thing.
“Cian Doyle’s done unbelievable. Less of a cultural thing, but he’s settled in really quickly.
“And he’s got to get up to speed, and he is getting up to speed.
“It’s not a lack of training or lack of understanding from any of them. It’s just time with all of them.
“And we’ve got to keep working with them.”
On the importance of the squad helping new arrivals
Artell also highlighted the role of the established players in helping new teammates settle into life at Blundell Park, with peer-to-peer learning an important part of the process.
“The lads that have been here for a while have got to help with that.
“Peer-to-peer learning is much more powerful than me telling them.
“So, there’s all that, and we’ve just got to keep plugging away and keep getting better and better and better.
“And if we do that, then we’ll have more afternoons like we’ve had today.”
You can watch David’s full post-match interview here:
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