Pennock praises Rovers spirit after win over Silkmen

[FF News]

Ady Pennock was full of praise for his Forest Green Rovers squad following Saturday’s 3-1 home victory that saw them leapfrog Vanarama Conference play-off rivals Macclesfield Town.

Rovers are now up to 4th; having replaced the Silkmen who drop to 5th, after goals from Aarran Racine, Jon Parkin and Dale Bennett secured a significant three points.

Only two matches remain as the play-off scrap continues with a difficult trip to Gateshead to come next followed by a final day home meeting with Dover.

After Saturday though, Pennock was delighted to see his team claim maximum points in front of a New Lawn crowd of 1,714.

He said: “Steve Arnold’s save when it was 2-1 was a fantastic save I think from (Matthew) Barnes-Homer. Then we go up the other end five or ten minutes later and score.

“We knew at half time it was going to be difficult with the wind against us. We’ve put our head and bodies on the line and at times there was some good football played.

“The two centre forwards work rate was phenomenal and I think Kurtis (Guthrie) and him (Parkin) are striking up a very good partnership.

“Kurtis is a young lad and what a great pro to learn off in Jon Parkin.”

It was Parkin’s stunning first half strike that installed some daylight between his current employers and former club.

He struck over Silkmen goalkeeper Rhys Taylor from near to the halfway line with a goal that has gone viral on the internet, and gave his team a 2-0 lead.

“It was fantastic wasn’t it? He’s got it in the locker and I’ve said all along. That would grace any football pitch up and down the land,” commented Pennock when reflecting on Parkin’s super strike.

It remains incredibly tight in the top seven places in the Vanarama Conference, and Rovers will still be keeping a close eye on how other teams fare in their matches elsewhere.

But the focus still remains on just his team for Pennock though and he praised the collectiveness of his players who built on Easter Monday’s emphatic away win at Chester.

“I thought Steve Arnold made a cracking save when it was 2-1 and I don’t think he gets enough praise for me really,” he added.

“Everyone is on his bandwagon now and again, but at the end of the day, as a team, collectively everyone was first class.

“It was a really strong wind out there and we handled it very well.”

Source: www.forestgreenroversfc.com

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