Metcalfe: “A successful team is not just 11 players”
Wednesday, 25. October 2023, 10:30 Uhr
Some excellent performances from Connor Metcalfe in recent weeks and months are one of the reasons why things are going so well for the Boys in Brown at the moment. On Tuesday, the Australian took time out after training to take questions from the media.
Connor Metcalfe on…
...the last few weeks and playing for Australia: “We’ve been going well, we’re training hard, and I’m enjoying my football. The last two weeks have been special. Starting twice for my country, especially at Wembley, is nothing I thought I’d ever be able to do. Going into the game against England you’re expected not to have the ball at all, to have to run around and defend and maybe get a chance, maybe not. I think we were so proud of ourselves and the way we played, even though we lost.”
...his strong performances of late: “I think I’m playing with a sort of confidence and that comes from working hard and being happy here. There are things I need to improve on, of course, but I’m pretty happy with the way I’m going.”
...starting for Australia but coming from the bench at Paderborn: “I know my role in the team. I’ve spoken to the coach. He’s told me what I am in the team, and I accept that. It doesn’t matter to me if I start or don’t start, all I want to do is just win. A successful team is not just 11 players. It’s all of us. We’re all working hard and obviously we all want to play. At the end of the day, there are 11 players that will start and if you don’t play you have to accept that. You have to keep going and continue being positive. There are always going to be opportunities during a season where a player might get injured or suspended and you need to be ready.”
...his own development since moving to the Millerntor: “I’ve definitely improved. When I came here, I knew the quality of the second division was going to be high. The quality of the players is a lot higher than back home. Every game is not an easy one, there’s lots of competition.”
Connor Metcalfe came on after the interval against Paderborn.
...the exciting style of play: “It’s taken a long time for us to feel really confident as a team but now we’re at a point where no matter what the result is, we just stick to our game plan because we really believe in it. It’s taken months of non-stop training to get to where we are. We have a really good game plan, so credit to Fabi for that, but we still keep making mistakes and need to work on things.”
...the current run of 15 league games without defeat: “It just goes to show how strong we are defensively. Obviously, we want to win games, but our main priority is to concede zero because if we do that, we have more of a chance of winning the game.”
...his aim for the next few weeks: “I just want to stay fit and healthy and play when and where I can. I know my role in the team. I can play multiple positions, and I’m told that’s a great quality that I have. If a player is injured, I’ll fill in there or there. I’m going to do my best but I just want us to continue our run.”
...the chances of getting promoted to the Bundesliga: “It’d be amazing, of course, but it’s a long way away. We have to keep working hard. There are lots of tough games coming up. We have three games in six days now and we’re not thinking about the end result. We’re focusing solely on Saturday’s game against Karlsruhe.”
...his goal against Kiel and the September Goal of the Month award: “I don’t score much, so it’d be pretty cool if I won it.”
Photos: Witters
