Stags’ boss David Flitcroft has said the recognition achieved by Mansfield Town during Sunday night’s EFL Awards filled him with ‘immense pride.’
The Stags were named as the Sky Bet League Two Family Club of the Year, had four players present in the Sky Bet League Two Team of the Season, and also saw skipper Krystian Pearce make the EFL’s Team of the Season.
The manager says that awards are a sign of the club moving in a positive direction.
“It [EFL Awards] was a brilliant night,” he said. “I love what the EFL represents. You see the work that goes on and what a club means to a town and its community.
“We have the best leagues in the world – the Premier League gets all the coverage but it’s a night to celebrate what the EFL is good at.
“A lot of work has gone in to make Mansfield Town as good as it can be off the pitch. To get the Family Club of the Year [award], you’re proud as a manager to support that.
“Seeing the players [Mal Benning, Pearce, Tyler Walker and CJ Hamilton] up there [on stage] filled me with an immense amount of pride. You work with these guys all year and they’ve been recognised as top performers this season.
“Nothing has been won or lost yet this season, but when you get recognised like that, it tells you that you’re doing something right.
“We’ve had that recognition, and I was really proud of the players and the club on Sunday night.
“He [Pearce] has had a tough career, but he wants to just keep fighting and keep driving for his dreams.
“Just to see him on stage and getting that [EFL Team of the Season] recognition, it’s brilliant for a football story.
"Seeing the players [Benning, Pearce, Walker and Hamilton] up there [on stage] filled me with an immense amount of pride. You work with these guys all year and they’ve been recognised as top performers this season."
“I’d like to mention Joe Thompson [former Rochdale midfielder] as well, getting the Sir Tom Finney award. The standing ovation kept going and rightly so.
“For Joey to come through what he came through and survive cancer twice, and get that recognition, it was absolutely brilliant.”
The Stags’ chief says he feels a ‘unity’ throughout the club as we enter the final five fixtures of the campaign.
“I think it [destiny] has always been in our own hands, since the start of the season. The support we’ve had home and away has been phenomenal.
“The backing that I’ve received from the players and staff has been promotion form. We’re all trying to drive for the same thing.
“There’s a unity within Mansfield Town that I recognise and I feel right through the club.
“It’s the people here that you want to do it for. We have to keep building the momentum and keep believing in that.”
This weekend, over 1,400 Mansfield supporters will travel to Northampton to cheer on the Stags in their latest Sky Bet League Two clash.
David Flitcroft highly praised the ‘unconditional support’ shown by the fans this season.
“We’re away from home [this weekend], and our last away performance is certainly the best away performance we’ve had this season.
“I’m delighted with our form going into the game. Keith Curle is a highly professional operator and a great manager.
“Northampton are a massive club in our league and a very good club. We’ll look forward to representing as Mansfield Town.
“At home on Saturday, it got a little bit edgy, but it’s that unconditional support we’ve had all season [that got us over the line].
“Cambridge piled some pressure onto us in the last ten minutes, and our support never wavered. It just kept driving us to keep the ball out of the net.
“We’ll need that over the next five games because it’s going to be five massive football matches.
“We have a brilliant goals conceded column and we’re resilient. We have warriors and incredible energy in the team.”
The manager also provided an injury update on his charges, including the news that Ben Turner could be sidelined for up to a fortnight.
“Ben Turner came off [against Cambridge] with a suspected calf problem. It’s a strain, so he’ll probably be out between ten and 14 days.
“So, Turns is going to be out on Saturday. Alistair Smith has an allergy that we’re just looking into at the minute. Until we know what that is, we’ll keep him away from the first team.
“It’s just a confidence thing with Danny [Rose] now. It’s just about getting those minutes in his legs. He come through it [reserves game against Notts County] unscathed, and that’s the important bit.
“It’s just about managing the squad now and making sure every detail is taken care of. We got over the Exeter [sickness] bug and we’ve contained that.
“It’s just about making sure that in the training load, we don’t get anything that turns into more than a couple of days off training.”
iFollow Stags subscribers can watch the manager’s interview in full by logging into mansfieldtown.net/ifollow later today.
