Midfielders Dale Stephens and Steve Sidwell were both in front of the media following the draw with Cardiff City last weekend.
Taking a point from our trip to the Cardiff City Stadium, Stephens met with the media following the game and as quoted by the Official Site he was just pleased to be getting regular game action again.
Cardiff was of course the 26 year old’s fifth straight start.
‘I`m enjoying playing again. I`ve been in the team for a number of consecutive games now, I`m back playing and I feel physically fit. Hopefully I can do a job for the team. I`ve enjoyed playing with Siddy. I`ve played with Beram Kayal for a long time and I`ve enjoyed it. He (Sidwell) leads with his experience and is a good bloke to have around the team as well. It`s nice to be back, picking up points and starting to win games again.’
Looking to the Cardiff game and result itself, the former Charlton Athletic man went on to say that on balance he felt we could be pretty pleased with a point, even if there was some disappointment at not taking all three.
‘Different fixtures come with different tasks and we knew that this was going to be a difficult place to come. We know the way they play, and they made it difficult for us. We came up against a strong team and it`s probably not our best performance, but we`ll take a point.’
With Leeds United next up at the weekend – well Friday evening to be precise – Stephens ended by saying that it was obviously important we did all we could to return to winning ways now.
‘We`ve got to get back to what we do best and go back to the way we know we can play. Hopefully we can put the performance in and get the right result come Friday.’
As for Sidwell, in his own interview he praised the determination of the side and insisted we remained focused on securing promotion this year.
‘First and foremost, there`s a lot of determination, desire and hunger to get to the Premier League. There`s a great team spirit in the dressing room and there are no egos. That goes all the way through, from the players to the staff at the club, and hopefully we can learn from just missing out last season, and go one step further this time around. A lot of people thought last season would have given us a headache, but we`ve shown that it hasn`t. But there`s an awful long way to go and we`ve got to take one game at a time.’
Having come to the club permanently this summer following his loan spell last year, he said lessons could and have been learned from that period and hopefully it will continue to stand us in good stead this season as we aim for the top flight.
‘I came in January last season and that was probably the worst period for the club at that time. Hopefully the lads can learn from that experience and we can have a better festive period this time around. As players, we grow into it, it`s part and parcel of the job. For the fans, it`s a great time because the games come thick and fast. It`s an important period and if we can get through this and into the New Year in a good position, we`ll be looking to carry on with that form.’
