Exeter City taking confidence into their trip to Charlton Athletic

EXETER City answered the question of whether they could get themselves motivated for a League One trip to Cambridge United last week in the best possible way, but the physical and emotional demands of that week previous should not be underestimated.

The Grecians went into that game at the Abbey Stadium off the back of a highly dramatic and agonising FA Cup fourth round clash with Nottingham Forest. City went toe-to-toe with their Premier League opponents for not just 90 minutes, but 20 minutes of stoppage time and a further 30 minutes of extra-time.

Added to the fact they were down to ten men from the 87th minute, it was a performance of herculean effort from the Grecians, whose hopes of a stunning and historic upset were cruelly dashed when they eventually lost a penalty shoot-out.

The match finished at 11pm and with the emotion of that epic encounter still raw, they headed to Cambridge having to deal with the aches and pains of their physical exertions from that night and the emotional comedown of returning to the bread and butter of League One fare.

A subsequent 1-0 win thanks to a superb Josh Magennis header was achieved more through sheer grit and determination than any quality football, but it was testament to this squad that they came through such a difficult assignment and answered any questions with flying colours.

“We have to build some form and build some consistency in the league,” Caldwell said reflecting on that win and ahead of today’s trip to Charlton Athletic. “We know there is still a lot of points still to play for and we want to fight for every single one of them.

“We have had a four-day build-up and that gives the players a little break after what was a really physically and emotionally demanding week. They have had that and now the training and the preparation is full steam ahead.

“Everyone has come back hungry, worked hard, it’s been competitive and now it is just the finder details in preparation for a tough match.”

That clean sheet at Cambridge was Exeter ’s first in the league since a goalless draw with Lincoln City on November 16, but the reasons why they have been leaking goals have been well documented. Hopefully, the Grecians can now field a settled backline, something that served them well when Pierce Sweeney and Johnly Yfeko were both fit and Tristan Crama was part of their set-up earlier this season.

“I say it a lot about our defending and clean sheets, it is the foundation to winning football matches and building that consistency of results, so to win and win the way we did in terms of the fight, the team spirit, the togetherness was brilliant,” Caldwell said. “But also a clean sheet is always really pleasing and something we need to build on and we need to take forward in the remaining 16 games.

“Now, I want to see more composure, more freedom when we get the ball and that bravery to play under pressure and in the right areas. I felt like we lost control of the game and we didn’t have great control with the ball. Without the ball, I thought we were brilliant; we all ran, we all fought, we all defended the box really well and the whole team was back helping out.

“It was a real team effort, but in possession, I think we can be better, we need to be braver, and we need to build some cohesion within the team. It is obviously a team that has not played a lot together, so we need to build that understanding and that is why a full training week is important. The players have to play with that confidence and bring that on Saturday.”

The Grecians will be cheered on by over 1,000 travelling supporters at The Valley, but getting that win will not be easy. Charlton had won eight of their previous 11 League One games before last week’s narrow 1-0 loss at big-spending leaders Birmingham City. That run of form has seen them climb to seventh, three points outside the play-off zone.

“They have shown the form you would have expected earlier in the season and they are in and around the play-offs, where you would expect them to be,” Caldwell added. “They have only lost twice at home all season, so we know how difficult a task it is, but we also know that at our very best – like we showed against Nottingham Forest in the FA Cup – we can be a match for anyone, so the big focus is on ourselves and the preparation to be the best we can be and if we are, then I am sure we can give them lots of problems.”