ANTHONY LIMBRICK was full of praise for his Woking players after the Cards rose to third in the Vanarama National League following a 2-0 victory at home to Chester on Tuesday evening.
Kane Ferdinand put the visitors ahead in the tenth minute, before Jamie Philpot made it three consecutive games on the scoresheet when he sealed the points late on.
After extending their unbeaten league run to five matches, Limbrick has praised the attitude of his side, who were only assembled in the summer, less than three months ago.
He told Woking FC TV: “I think we’ve got a bit of a toughness and steelness to us and it’s a brand new team, we didn’t keep many players from last season so it’s going to take time for them to gel and get together and they’re learning the style of play.”
“The pleasing thing is that they reflect the hard work and the effort like when the fans come and watch us and you can see they try, they run around and know what it means to play for Woking.”
Kane Ferdinand heads Woking in front. [Photo by David Holmes – Woking FC]
He said: “We might recall me saying a few weeks ago that we need to find a formula away from home and we’re doing that now. We’re in good spirit and good form and delighted with the win.
“We started well, we came out of the blocks a bit quick. We had a game plan to press in their half and got our reward. Afterwards, we fell off a bit but we held on.”
Woking Celebrate – [Photo by David Holmes; Woking FC]
Despite his standout performance in the centre of midfield, Limbrick has targeted improvement from the 24-year-old, who signed from East Thurrock United in December 2016.
The Cards boss added: “There’s no doubt that Kane Ferdinand is a good player but he had to improve his work rate and his defensive side of the game.”
“If you counted the amount of interceptions he got where he nipped in front, regained possession and won second balls it was fantastic. When’s playing well and passing the ball we tend to play well and he’s been key alongside Chez Isaac in the victories we’ve had recently.”
Philpot continued his rich vein of form in front of goal, and after moving ahead of Inih Effiong, Limbrick has praised the strength in depth that his side, which has seen them to eight wins so far.
“You could argue that there were 6 players that would normally start who were out tonight so I think it shows there is healthy competition for places. It’s a small squad so they all know their roles and they understand they will play and get opportunities and they have taken their opportunities.”
One of those players was Joe Ward, who was rested, and captain Richard Orlu, who made his return to the bench. There was also a start for Fabio Saraiva, and Limbrick was satisfied with his performance.
He added: “That shows the good work that’s been done by the physio and the strength and conditioning coach to get Fabio Saraiva up to fitness and able to manage a game at this level.
“It’s not been easy, he’s been out for a long time. He played a couple of reserve games but didn’t have the minutes he had tonight so the fact he went in there and kept a clean sheet at left-back which is not his favoured position is a real credit to him. He’s a clever player, he understands the game and works a lot on the tactical side of the game so I was really pleased for him.”
Saraiva played 71 minutes before he was replaced by Academy graduate Lazar Stojsavljevic, who made his debut for Woking at left-back, and Limbrick revealed how the defender showed more fear at his team initiation rather than on the pitch.
“I was pleased that Lazar was thrown into the fire pit. It was a big test for him but he saw the game out a left-back. He was more nervous when he sang his song at lunch rather than when he went out onto the pitch.”
“It’s not easy going on in a game where you’re defending a lot in the second half, especially in your first game. He’s got a big future and we’ll keep working with him.”