Bucks boss McIntosh hails his '˜magnificent' squad

Martin McIntosh has hailed his '˜magnificent' players after Buxton continued their impressive start to the new season.
Martin McIntosh has overseen five wins out of six so far this season.Martin McIntosh has overseen five wins out of six so far this season.
Martin McIntosh has overseen five wins out of six so far this season.

The Bucks have won five of their six games so far and remain on top of the early league standings, two 3-0 wins over the Bank Holiday weekend cementing their position.

And McIntosh was quick to heap praise on his troops for the way they’ve hit the ground running.

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He said: “We’ve had to work hard for everything we’ve achieved so far but there have been lots of good displays and the players are really enjoying their football.

“The lads have been magnificent and it’s all down to them. They’ve put in some serious hard work and it’s paying off for them.

“I wouldn’t say we expected to start this well but someone has to be top after five games so why not us?”

Saturday’s 3-0 win at home to Marine was secured thanks to second-half goals from Jamie Jackson, Brad Grayson and Fabrice Bembo-Leta, before a similar scoreline at Mickleover Sports on Monday was achieved with strikes from Grayson, Niall Doran and Brad Abbott.

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McIntosh said: “One of the most pleasing things for me, especially as an ex-defender, is having had four clean sheets so far.

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“We’ve been resolute at the back and frustrating teams which is hopefully how it’ll continue.”

Despite the good start to the campaign, McIntosh remains realistic when it comes to assessing how long he thinks his players can maintain their form.

He said: “One of the pitfalls of having a relatively small squad is that it can be hard to maintain the great standards we’ve set so far.

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“We know from experience that you’re only a bit of bad luck away from things turning against you and that can be all it takes to set you off on a bad run.

“When you have to play 46 games, every team is guaranteed to have a bad spell just as much as you’re highly likely to hit a purple patch like we’ve started with.

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“But we’ll keep doing what we’re doing and try to take advantage of our good form by getting as many points as we can on the board.”

Attention now turns away from the league and towards the FA Cup as Buxton prepare to visit another side who have enjoyed a superb start to the season this weekend.

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Witton Albion top the Evo-Stik Division One South standings having won all four of their league games so far, scoring ten goals and conceding two in the process.

And McIntosh is well aware of the challenge Buxton will face.

He added: “Whenever I’ve come up against Witton I’ve always had a tough game and this will be no different.

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“It’s set to be a great cup tie between two in-form sides and we’re relishing it.

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“The FA Cup is always tough no matter who you play because everyone is determined to have a run and potentially get a big tie further down the line, plus there’s the financial element to it as well.

“We’re no different and have been handed a very hard tie to get through, even though Witton are from the level below.”

Should Saturday’s match end in a draw then the replay will be held at the Silverlands next Tuesday night.

Buxton then return to league action by hosting Barwell on September 10.

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