Welling United player-coach Jack Parkinson: Our task was to finish above where we finished last year but obviously we want to be in the play-offs come the end of the season

WELLING UNITED player-coach Jack Parkinson says he wants to stay in the play-off zone.

The Wings have climbed up to seventh-place in the Vanarama National League South table with 23 points from 14 games after winning their last five league games.


Welling United player-coach
Jack Parkinson says he is
targeting the play-offs.
Photo: Twitter

Jamie Coyle’s men came away from Weston-super-Mare with a 2-0 win last weekend and Parkinson, 28, is delighted with the way things have turned around since their shock FA Cup defeat to Bostik North side Haringey Borough.

“We’re on a good little run at the moment,” said Parkinson.

“The side’s not really changed much from the start of the season. We’ve still got a new side and it’s going to take a little bit of time to put together.

“For us to win our last five league games, we’ve only lost one in our last 12, we’ve kept four clean sheets in our last five league games.

“Going away to Weston, who I think we’re unbeaten in five, shows how far we’ve come.

“But look, like no stretch of the imagination is anyone getting carried away!  The biggest thing for us is limiting the amount of suspensions we get and the amount of injuries we’ve got because do have a small squad, working on a tight budget, so I think if we can keep that up, we’ve got a chance, but let’s see what comes up in April.”

Welling United travel to Evesham on Saturday to play fifteenth-placed Gloucester City.

The Tigers go into the game on a run of six games without a win in all senior competitions.

“Tough!  You look at Weston, they were sixteenth or seventeenth when we played them last Saturday but going away from home, I know Gloucester play at Evesham, which is not the best of places. It’s going to be tough.

“The most important thing for us is we’re starting to find our identity a little bit and we honestly believe that we now have got that belief that we can go anywhere and win anywhere.  That’s not going to happen every week, we understand that, but to have the belief that we can go away to Weston and go away to Gloucester and win those sort of games is a sign of things to come, hopefully.”

Welling United occupy the last play-off berth and are only four points adrift of league leaders Braintree Town, who lost their top-flight status at the end of last season.

“At the start of the season our target was to finish above where we did last season, which was sixteenth.  That would’ve been a success for the club because the club has had a tough time of late,” said Parkinson.

“I’m a player, I’m a coach. I want to be in the play-offs.  I won the League last year at Maidenhead and there’s no secret. You don’t go into a league not wanting to win it or not get into the play-offs.

“Our task was to finish above where we finished last year but obviously we want to be in the play-offs come the end of the season and if we can carry on the way we are then we will have a chance. If we don’t, then obviously we won’t.”

Visit Welling United’s website: www.wellingunited.com/wp

Gloucester City  v  Welling United
Vanarama National League South
Saturday 21^st October 2017
Kick Off 3:00pm
at Jubilee Stadium, Cheltenham Road, Evesham, Worcestershire WR11 2LZ