Stags’ midfield dynamo Chris Clements spoke of the pride of leading the Stags as captain after today's 3-1 victory over Crawley Town.
Today’s match was new manager Steve Evans’ first game in-charge at One Call Stadium and a double from Clements alongside Pat Hoban’s strike scripted a dominant win, which sent Mansfield to 11th in Sky Bet League Two.
And Clements, who has now skippered the side for the last three games in the absence of Lee Collins, has revealed how much he is enjoying the role.
“I think Lee Collins should be back next week, and he will take the armband back because he is the club skipper, but I am enjoying every moment of it," Clements said.
“I think as a captain you have got to be more vocal, and with the armband, it makes you speak more in a way; before games, during games and after the games.
“As a captain, you have got to help other people on the pitch, with that voice and the way you play."
The former Hednesford Town man highlighted the intensity of the Stags' performance as a stand-out feature of today's victory.
“We needed the three points and we got that today. It was a high-energy performance, which we showed today.
“We were very good in front of goal today. I thought we were the dominant team in the first half, but we just could not get that goal.
“[In the] first-half, we had a few chances that we could have been more clinical with, but we realised that if we kept going, that goal will come.
“We knew if we got one, they’d come out a bit more and we’ll be able to exploit the space behind them, which we did.”
Although it is still early days in the new manager’s tenure, Clements hailed the Scot’s initial impact.
“Obviously, it has been different with new gaffer coming in. He has not been able to do much, because he has had only a few days with us.
“He’s come in and said that we weren’t going for long balls, we needed to work at a higher tempo to keep them away today, and I think we showed that in our performance today.
“He’s (Evans) said he is going to speak to us individually in the next couple of weeks, hope to get to know a few players, and then take it from there.”
Chris Clements’ post-match interview is available to view on Stags PlayerHD.
