Carshalton boss Massey owns up to the tough task ahead
New man: Rhys Coleman, here in action for Robins’ rivals Cray Wanderers, made his debut for Stuart Massey on Tuesday night, but he could not prevent a 4-0 home defeat to Dulwich Hamlet SP52241
Carshalton Athletic boss Stuart Massey has admitted it will be tough to stay in the Ryman Premier.
He delivered the damning verdict after the Robins’ relegation woes were compounded by a 4-0 defeat at home to Dulwich Hamlet on Tuesday night.
It leaves Carshalton just one point off the foot of the table, and seven points behind Enfield Town.
Massey said: “This campaign won’t be defined by matches against Dulwich as they are the standout team in this league.
“They were a real handful. I had spoken to several other managers before the game about their quality, but they had too much for us.
“Realistically it is going to be difficult for us to stay up, the past couple of results haven’t changed that,” he conceded.
“But we’ve had a couple of much improved performances recently, and were unlucky not to come away with anything against Lowestoft with 10-men.”
Despite the team’s struggles, and a record of one win in six since he took over last month, Massey is still relishing the challenge at Colston Avenue.
“I am enjoying it, even if that’s hard to understand coming off a 4-0 home defeat,” he said.
“It’s good to be involved with the lads and we are cracking on with the task ahead.”
“Team spirit is good, although a few boys were shocked by the quality of Dulwich. Our aim is to reach that level.”
Massey has added to his squad during his month in charge, and two new signings – defenders Rhys Coleman and Jamie Riley – made their debuts against Dulwich just 24 hours after signing.
Massey said: “I’ve worked with Rhys before, and Jamie is young, but keen to knuckle down – he has a good career in front of him.”
Carshalton go to mid-table Canvey Island this Saturday needing a confidence boost.
Massey said: “Confidence is everything for us – hopefully Tuesday night won’t have dented it too much.
“I have set the target of two or three wins out of the next six or seven games, and that has not changed.”
Tough job: Stuart Massey is not under any illusions as to the difficulty of keeping the Robins in the Ryman Premier League
