Midfielder Jacob Maddox hopes that Cheltenham Town’s 6-2 Checkatrade Trophy victory over Arsenal Under-21s can “kick-start” their season as the Robins secured a first victory under Michael Duff.
Man of the match Maddox scored twice in three second half minutes to put Duff’s side 4-1 up at the time, before he was taken off as a precaution after netting his first goals for the club.
“The win was great but obviously the performance as well, it was one of the best that we have played for a while and we played with confidence and a good mentality,” said Chelsea loanee Maddox.
“It’s long overdue, in my eyes anyway! Hopefully I can now start scoring more consistently as I think I can, so it should be the start of many.”
The 19-year-old was up against familiar opposition, having tussled with the same age group in youth team London derbies before coming to the Jonny-Rocks Stadium for his first taste of senior action.
“I know quite a lot of them and now how they play but in games like this you just need to focus on yourself, focus on the team and we played well today,” he added.
“This was kind of what I’m used to having grown up in the academy system, but I brought a bit of how you have to play in League Two as well.
“It was a change of system today, but I felt we adapted well and brought out a lot of possession-based football, which is also useful for a player like me as well.
“I’ve loved it here to be honest, everyone’s been so welcoming, and the fans are great – it’s all good but obviously the results haven’t been the best, but I think the performances have been good and we just need to keep trying to flick the switch.
“It doesn’t seem to be dropping at the moment but hopefully this can kick-start our season as the quality is there, we see it every day in training.”