Grimsby Town assistant manager Chris Doig gives the inside track from the Mariners' training ground ahead of this afternoon's Conference clash at Kidderminster
On the injury situation...
" We're as we are really, so there are no changes. One or two are getting slightly closer, but not close enough for today's game unfortunately. Nathan Arnold has had a couple of recurrences of the same injury, which is frustrating for him and us, but it's been looked at and he's working on it. With that one, I think it's more a question for the physio, not me to be honest, but it is unfortunate and it's not what we wanted. Hopefully he'll get back on the training pitch sooner rather than later because it's been nearly two months now. He could give us different options. He's obviously got stuff to give – you can see that from the short cameos that he's had with us. I thought he was excellent at Gainsborough and he looked sharp in the training sessions before the injury showed itself again. He'll give us a real threat going forward, but we need to get him fit first and foremost. Jon-Paul Pittman is still to have a scan on his injury, which he says feels a lot better to when he first did it. Hopefully it's not as severe as first thought because he's certainly moving a lot better. He's still going to be a while before he's back, but that scan shouldn't be too far away and then we'll know for definite where he is with it. With Lenell John-Lewis, he's still a bit sore but feeling a lot better. I think it'll be next week before we see him back. Other than that, there's a couple of other knocks and bumps and bruises but nothing serious enough to affect us for today's game."
On Kidderminster...
" The Halifax result ended a run of consecutive defeats and that was important going into today. Halifax is a difficult place to go at the best of times and they've started the season really well while we were down to the bare bones so to have gone there and got a point is a good result. Hopefully that will give us a boost of confidence ahead of what is another difficult game this afternoon. I'm certainly more confident going into it on the back of a good result, rather than a defeat, that's for sure! For me, barring the first half against Torquay, the lads have been excellent so far and hopefully that will continue. Kidderminster are a good side with some good players and they've made a solid start to the season. We're expecting a physical, direct game from them – that's how they play. It's not like we don't encounter that most weeks in this league, so we've got to stand up to that physicality, match it and then hopefully prove ourselves as the better team on the day. Aggborough is a difficult place to go and it was a tough game there last year, but we got the result – hopefully it'll be the same again. We've got to be confident and play our own game. There's no doubt it will be a tight game, but we're very confident of what we can do and hopefully we'll come out on the right end of the result."
On Town's Plan B...
" We don't go out with just one plan. It's up to us – and the players – to recognise what the opposition are doing. Players have to take responsibility to notice that and react to it."
On consistency...
" Having all your players available week-to-week certainly helps! It's been a bit of a strange start to the season for us with suspensions and injuries but when we have had more or less a fully-fit squad, people have seen what we're capable of, but we haven't been able to do that on a consistent basis. Getting everyone back and having that competition for places would certainly give us a better chance of being more consistent. But it's a funny league and a lot of teams are beating each other, which is the way it goes. Consistency is the key and the teams that do go up are the ones that might not always play their best but week-to-week, grind out the results they need. Possibly we need to do that a bit more and when we're not playing well, be a bit more aware that we need to dig in and see the games through."
On the Scottish people's independence vote...
" I was a 'yes' but unfortunately I don't get a say living down in England. But I was a yes vote from the start and, from my point of view at least, there was no other vote to make, but there we go. I always thought it would go the other way because of the undecided voters. But I'm not a politician – far from it. I struggle enough with football, let alone politics! But we've got the result now and we'll go from here."
