Michael Gash

On target against Burton last weekend, but denied by the woodwork earlier in the same game and by the linesman's flag against Rushden, Michael Gash feels he is getting used to the demands of Conference football.

The 20-year-old was one of the three young players to cross the river to join United from Cambridge City last summer, where he had scored plenty of goals at youth and reserve level as well as in the Conference South last season.

He tore the patella tendon in his knee last February and was sidelined until pre-season, so at the beginning of the season he was behind the rest of the players in terms of fitness, but he feels he has caught up now.

"At the beginning of pre-season it was quite hard because everyone else had obviously played until the end of the previous season whereas I had missed the last four months of the season, and they had kept themselves fit during the summer but I was still being treated for the injury until pre-season," he recalls.

"I worked hard in training and I did extra running and weights at home to make sure I was right, but obviously it took two or three months to lose weight and get to full fitness."

A Tottenham fan, Michael is in his second spell with United, having spent a season here at under-16 level. He lived abroad until he was 12, with spells in Germany and Cyprus where his father taught in schools on bases for the British armed forces, and when his family returned to England he played for Peterborough United at U13 to U14 level.

Following the disbandment of their centre of excellence, he followed many of the youth development staff (Dan Ashworth, Kit Carson, etc) and young players to United. However he was not offered a scholarship at the end of his U16 year and joined Cambridge City's youth set-up, where he spent three years before the chance to move to the Abbey in June last year.

In addition to former City team-mates Robbie and Josh Simpson, Michael also recognised several familiar faces from his year at United: "I knew Stephen Smith, Adam Davies, Michael Morrison and Darren Quinton, and coming here at the same time as Josh and Robbie made it a lot easier to change clubs," he says.

"But everyone made us feel very welcome anyway so it was quite easy to settle into a new club."
Having played and scored regular and youth and reserve level at City, including twelve goals in last season at Conference South level, Michael feels he has now got used to the demands of full-time football in the Conference National.

"Although it's only one league higher, it's still quite a big step and you can tell it's higher quality," he admits. "They were good players at Cambridge City but when you come here even in training the quality is much better and in the games it's much harder; you have to think a lot more and make sure there are less mistakes in your game, and I reckon you have to be quite a bit fitter as well.

"I reckon the Conference South is a good standard but you can tell the difference when you make the step up to the Conference. It was a change joining a professional club and coming into full-time training too, after training twice a week at City. Coming in every day helps a lot with your progress and your fitness, and sometimes there are games on Tuesday as well as Saturday so it did take a bit of getting used to, but I think I've adjusted now and I'm enjoying it."

Michael's first goal was the opener in a memorable 3-0 home win against Gravesend in November, and it was a fine strike from 25 yards: "I had played a few games and hadn't scored so it was a big relief to score, especially after an earlier miss.

"All strikers need goals to get their confidence and I was happy too because it was quite a way out. Any goal is a good goal for a striker but I was pleased with that one."

Having had a goal disallowed for offside on Boxing Day, Michael then hit the post against Burton last Saturday before netting his second goal early in the second half: "That one was the total opposite, taking a deflection and going in, but as long as it counts it doesn't matter how you score it."

Michael has also found it helpful to work with Jimmy Quinn, a vastly experienced international centre-forward during his own playing career, and adds, "The gaffer does a lot of work with the strikers in training and gives us advice about what we need to do or helps us with any mistakes we're making.

"He scored a lot of goals in his career so he knows what he's talking about, so if you take the advice and criticism on board then you know that you'll be progressing and making yourself a better player.

"I think there are a few areas of my game that I need to improve on and the gaffer's told me that all I need to do in training is work on that and listen to him and just learn from what he has to say to us."

Quinn has challenged the strikers at the club to answer the shortage of goals and Michael hopes he can improve his tally in the second half of the season.

"I'd like to score ten goals this season and hopefully, if I'm here next season, to build on that, but when you get your chance on the pitch you have to take it," he says.

"There are five good quality strikers at the club at the moment and we just have to prove to the manager in training and in games that we can score goals, and when we get out there that's all we want to do.

"I haven't been here long and I've still got to prove myself to many people, especially the fans, and obviously the gaffer has changed since I came here so every day in training is a chance to prove myself against the other strikers.

"Although they're your team-mates, you have to try to get ahead of them in the pecking order to play on Saturdays."

Reflecting on the three defeats over the Christmas period, and particularly the game at Kidderminster on New Year's Day, Michael feels there has been an improvement in United's performance levels and approach play in each game, culminating in Kiddy goalkeeper Scott Bevan's one man resistance on Tuesday.

"It's really disappointing at the moment and obviously the last three games were all losses, but we've been playing much better. You can't knock the team for work rate and effort, but for some reason the goals aren't going in for us.

"How we didn't score on New Year's Day, it's just unbelievable - their keeper pulled off some great saves - but if we play like that again today hopefully we'll get our just desserts and score a few goals and win the game.

"It's still very tight in the table and I believe with the team we've got we'll get out of it and start to progress up the league."

My Favourite Game:
"The game in pre-season against West Ham was special, to be on the same pitch as all those top quality players and especially Teddy Sheringham, who was one of my favourite players when he was at Spurs. And I played at Wembley in a little game before Peterborough's play-off final and I scored in that, so those two are my favourites."

Andrea Thrussell

*This interview was first published in the programme for the match against Forest Green Rovers on 6th January, 2007

Previous Featured Players:
31Jan07: Stephen Smith
11Jan07: Piers Wixon (scholar)
13Dec06: Phil Smith (scholar)
07Dec06: Danny Brown
23Nov06: Sam Cutler (scholar)
16Nov06: Robbie Simpson
02Nov06: Craig Bussens (scholar)
12Oct06: Michael Hyem (scholar)
06Oct06: Rob Wolleaston
25Sep06: Matt Kendrick (scholar)
20Sep06: Jon Brady
14Sep06: Mark Peters
11Sep06: Jordan Collins (scholar)

Last season's Featured Players:
16May06: Jon Brady
04May06: Tommy Jaszczun
26Apr06: David Bridges
20Apr06: Scott Howie
13Apr06: Craig Westcarr
22Mar06: Andy Duncan
15Mar06: David Bridges
01Feb06: David Chick
08Dec05: Michael Morrison
29Nov05: Ritchie Hanlon
25Oct05: Stephen Smith
05Oct05: Fola Onibuje
29Sep05: Mark Peters

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