Reach for the top — Jones

MIKE Jones has emerged from the exile which laid him low . . and now he plans to hit the heights with Athletic.

The busy midfielder is expected to step back into the side for the visit of Yeovil tomorrow having been sick last weekend with a stomach bug.

Jones (27) was struck down with illness on the morning of the Doncaster game, missing out on a starting spot for the first time since the Capital One Cup defeat at home to Middlesbrough. He was badly missed.

“It was just a 48-hour kind of thing and I just didn’t have the energy to play,” said the former Bury and Crawley man, so impressive since his free transfer switch in the summer.

Jones should take up a roaming role tomorrow on the right side of the pitch, for a game he says is as vital for the players as it is special for the manager Lee Johnson.

“It goes without saying how important it is for the manager, but it’s important to us, too,” he added.

“It’s a home game and we want to win it as much as we do any game at home.”

As for Athletic’s ongoing chances this year, Jones is bullish, with the club currently fulfilling his own pre-season expectations.

“I wouldn’t have signed if I didn’t think we would be up there,” he said. “We are doing well but could be better off, if you look at some of the earlier games we have drawn like Notts County and Gillingham.

“There are not many games where you could say we nicked something when we didn’t deserve to.

“We are where we are and the table doesn’t lie. We can definitely stay there, but we have a tough Christmas period now and it will test us out.

“If we can come through Christmas and into January still up there, we have a really good chance. We have got all the top teams to play at home, so we are in there and enjoying it.

“We just have to work hard to stay there.

“We want to be up there in the top three. We want to win every game we go into.

“There is a good belief round the squad. We have good players and a good spirit and the lads have a laugh round the place in the week and knuckle down at the weekend.

“We believe we can go higher. There are a lot of points up for grabs over Christmas, so we push on.”