Hazell aiming to keep it clean
Reporter: TONY BUGBY’S weekly look behind the scenes at Boun
Date published: 17 February 2009
DEFENSIVE linchpin Reuben Hazell says clean sheets give him as much pleasure as scoring goals.
The 29-year-old defender, who last week signed a new two-and-a-half year contract, celebrated by finding the net for only the third time in 74 appearances for Athletic with the first goal against Northampton Town.
He also scored the opener in last season’s 3-1 win at Leeds United and grabbed the match-winning effort at Tranmere Rovers earlier this term.
Hazell, who is still haunted by the miss in the dying minutes of the game at League One leaders Leicester City which would have handed Athletic victory, said: “The goals I have scored this season have been really important.
“There was the winner at Tranmere and the first against Northampton on Saturday which helped to get us going.
“It is great to score goals, especially when you are not in the team to do that job.
“But I am happy when we stop the opposition scoring. I was disappointed when we conceded against Northampton as we were on target for our third clean-sheet in a row.”
And Athletic would have kept a third consecutive shut-out but for Adebayo Akinfenwa’s second-half header, which squirmed out of Jan Budtz’s grasp.
Manager John Sheridan describes Hazell and Sean Gregan as the best centre-back partnership in League One.
And Hazell reckons he is playing the best football in his career at Boundary Park.
He said: “What has come into my game at the age of 29 is consistency.
“With young players — and there are a lot here — sometimes you don’t know what you are going to get from them week-to-week.
“When you are young you go on to the pitch hoping to play well, but when I go out now I know what I have to do to play well, and that comes with experience.”
