Our destiny is in our hands

LEE Johnson has come in for much criticism from supporters over recent league results

ATHLETIC manager Lee Johnson has a simple solution to Simon Corney’s renewed threat to resign if the club is relegated — don’t get relegated.

Crawley Town come to Boundary Park tomorrow after a tough week for Athletic.

“It is simple — don’t go down,” said Johnson when asked for a response to the chairman’s stated intention to relinquish control if the team drops.

“I like Simon and I want him here. He is very emotional about it, as we all are, and he probably feels that way. At the moment it’s like we are 10 points adrift. We aren’t 10 points adrift. We still have the upper hand at the moment and it is in our hands.

“Are we all going to wallow in it, or are we going to stand up and be counted as a force?

“Do I like the feeling that people aren’t happy? Of course not, because I care.

“All I can do at the moment, really, is knuckle down and control what we can. That is tactically and technically getting the right players out there. When it comes to events on the pitch, it is then down to the players’ decision-making.”

Johnson refuses to believe the Crawley game is of any greater significance than the clashes that follow it.

“They are all important,” he said. “The only extra bit is that obviously, we are at home and the last two performances at Boundary Park haven’t been the best. The lads are keen to change that.”

Korey Smith and John Paul Kissock join Genseric Kusunga on the injured list for tomorrow