"A point's probably a fair result," says Millington after final-day draw with Eastleigh

Watch more of our videos on ShotsTV.com 
and on Freeview 262 or Freely 565
Visit Shots! now
Town boss Chris Millington said a draw was a fair result after his side's final league game of the season against Eastleigh.

Rob Harker's equaliser deep into added time salvaged a point for Town after Kairo Mitchell had given Eastleigh a half-time lead.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

"It was a crap first-half by us and it wasn't much better by Eastleigh to be fair," Millington told the Courier.

"They were the better team but only marginally.

Chris MillingtonChris Millington
Chris Millington

"It was one of those halves of football where we were looking at it from the sides thinking 'it's reminiscent of some really poor performances we've had this season', where we've given the opposition the leg-up.

"But once we got a few things sorted at half-time and the lads fixed one or two things we then looked a lot more like the team we've been in recent weeks.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

"A bit disappointed we didn't win it with the clear-cut chances we had in the second-half but a point's probably a fair result."

The Town boss said he could take positives and negatives from the game.

"We were woeful first-half and it felt to me like a lot of players were in second gear, protecting themselves, not going in for challenges, not at the races," he said.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

"I put that down to the fact it's the end of season league game where there's nothing really to play for and they've got a cup final they don't want to miss out on.

"The Mani situation in the Woking game probably gave them a bit of a reality check and made one or two a bit more cautious than they'd normally be, and that's what the first-half performance really spoke to me."

Millington added: "We wanted to win it, that was what we were talking about at half-time, we wanted to finish as high as we could.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

"We didn't quite do enough to do it but had it been against a different keeper and a different type of defence we'd have probably gone on and scored two or three.

"But much like ourselves, Eastleigh are a difficult team to score against and we've got to be pleased we took one of the chances."

Halifax finish the season in 11th place in the National League, ten points off the play-offs.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

"When we're coming off the pitch after games like Torquay at home, Scunthorpe at home, Maidenhead at home, dreaming of an 11th place finish and a cup final would have seemed like insanity," Millington said.

"So in some respects, from those low points, it's better than we could've expected.

"However, the unbeaten run we're now on, the performances we've put in in recent weeks, the cohesiveness of the team, the energy, the hard-work, the resilience and the organisation show that we should be right up there competing at the top end of the division, if we can wheel out those performances on a more consistent basis.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

"Glass half full when you look at some of the low points but glass half empty when you look at some of the teams we've beaten and the run we've gone on."

The result means Town keeper Sam Johnson shares the Golden Glove award with Eastleigh keeper Joe McDonnell.

"Delighted, and he earned it today because he made a number of saves in the first-half that kept us in the game," Millington said.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

"That was part of the rhetoric at half-time, to make sure people were aware it's an opportunity for us to get an accolade for a team-mate who really deserves it.

"It's something the team should be proud of because it takes a team to keep clean sheets but I'm especially pleased for Sam because he's quietly gone about his work and really earned the accolade."

On whether striker Mani Dieseruvwe, who wasn't involved in the squad, will miss next month's FA Trophy final at Wembley through suspension, Millington said: "We're not clear at the moment as to what the outcome will be but he's a very important part of the squad and somebody who we would dearly love to be involved if it were possible."

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

When asked when he expected to hear about Dieseruvwe's availability, Millington said: "We're going to have a week off now so by the time we're back in we want some clarity around who can potentially play in the final."

Festus Arthur was stretchered off in the second-half of the game.

"He's gone to hospital to get checked over, it's his Achilles," Millington said.

"It looked very painful and it didn't look great.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

"Hopefully it looked worse than it was but the initial assessment suggests it's quite a bad injury."

Millington feels defenders Jesse Debrah and Jack Senior are both on track to play at Wembley.

"Him and Jack Senior both trained yesterday and are in decent shape.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

"Jack's probably a bit behind Jesse and would have been only used in an emergency situation.

"But chasing the game we thought Jesse will give us that extra bit of security at the back, preventing the counter, and he's a threat off set-pieces.

"Also with it being the last home game of the season, he's one of the players who deserved a little ripple of applause from the fans.

"Injury-wise we're doing well.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

"The potential spanners in the works are how serious the injury is to Festus and Mani Dieseruvwe's situation, they're the two things we want to resolve as soon as we possibly can.

"But other than that we've got people motoring back to fitness who can be very important for us going to Wembley,"

On midfielder Luke Summerfield, Millington said: "He took part in training yesterday and is doing what Summers does, which is beating all the expectations."

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

On Kian Spence, the Town boss said: "He had a little setback so it's a tricky situation.

"But we'll know more in the next couple of days on Kian."

On Jordan Keane, Millington said: "His calf is recovering well, he's getting back over that.

"He's got one or two other niggles that are frustrating for him but hopefully he should be available for Wembley."

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

On captain Tom Clarke, the Halifax manager said: "He's had a few checks, scans, ultrasounds and we're just trying to get a full understanding of what the condition is and hopefully we'll know more in the next few days."

And on loanee Fidel O'Rourke, Millington said: "He's been going through his treatment back at Liverpool but he'll be back in training with us when we're back in a week on Monday."

The Town squad will now rest for a few days ahead of their preparations for Wembley.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

"Everyone's off, go away, get a breather, switch off for a week, then we're back in on Monday, May 8," Millington said.

"There won't be much of a break for the staff because we'll be preparing and going through our analysis to the enth degree on Gateshead.

"But by the time the players get back in they'll have a real targeted training programme in relation to the physical, technical and tactical preparation for the final."

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

When asked if Town would have any friendly games as part of their build-up, Millington said: "Hopefully yeah. We'll certainly have one in-house game and we've got another more competitive game lined-up.

"As the week goes on we'll weigh up whether or not we need to slot anything else in.

"It might not be a full 90 minutes but whether or not we nee a 60-minute blast against a proper opposition, but we'll approach that one as we go."