Charlie Blakemore wants one more midfielder to replenish a Chasetown squad which paid the price for its historic FA Cup successes this season.
Blakemore has had to think on his feet in recent weeks to fill the gaps left by a flurry of departures in the wake of his team’s Cup exploits.
Such a key trio as Vaughan Thomas, Kyle Perry and Chris Slater are not going to be easily replaced but amid the disappointment of this week’s home defeat by Leamington, Blakemore was delighted at the debut of Lucan Spittle in defence.
Chasetown fans must wait a little longer for Jermaine Gordon, signed from Coalville, and teenage full back Phil Harris but the changing face of the side continued this week with the arrival of Dexter Ravenhill from Walsall’s reserves.
“I thought Spittle was outstanding against Leamington,” said Blakemore. “He came straight in without any chance to train and was fantastic.
“It’s difficult, because getting the players in is one thing but then getting them to play the way we play and how we do things is another matter. It takes time.
“But after next week we have two games a week until the end of the season and the demands are going to be high.
“We still have much to play for and while everyone was down because of the Leamington result, they should remember it was our first defeat in 10 league games.”
Ravenhill has been brought in through Blakemore’s healthy contacts with Walsall’s Billy Jones and Micky Halsall and brings with him the flexibility to play in a variety of
positions in midfield and up front.
But injuries continue to play their part in deciding Blakemore’s strategy, with Ben Steane out for a couple of weeks because of an ankle knock suffered against Leamington. And Sam Smith is a contender for the run-in but no more.
“I’m still looking to identify one more midfield player to add to the squad,” says Blakemore. “This is a real challenge, but I always knew it would be when our players were cherry-picked after the Cup run.”
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