Gillingham assistant manager John Schofield writes exclusively for the KM Group
Published: 08:00, 09 August 2013
We worked so hard last season for weekends like this.
This season we have moved up a level and now we get the chance to play teams who, a year ago, were playing a level above that.
It will be a great test at Wolves and I am sure everyone is looking forward to it. The fans will be right behind us and with around 1,500 going to Molineux, their support will be brilliant.
We may not have got the results we wanted from our opening two games but if we keep turning in performances like we have done in spells, then the results will follow.
The players are all hungry to succeed and have total belief in what we are trying to do. The players are well drilled on how we are going to attack, how we are going to defend. Practice and drilling and re-drilling is what releases the anxiety.
Some fans may think training is five-a-side, or a bit of running but there is a lot of tactical stuff that goes on. Yes, we do play small-sided games and passing drills but they are all based on what we are going to do.
In the last two games, we have faced teams who keep possession well and the squad are tuned into the understanding that we can’t always have the lion’s share of possession or get in their faces.
It is about being patient and confident in our ability. When we haven’t got possession, we need to make sure we don’t do silly things, go charging in and getting picked off. At times we have done that well.
John Schofield's full column in Friday's Medway Messenger.