Colin Kaim-Richards has said there is still plenty of work to do as his debut in senior management saw Crawley Town take a positive step towards survival with a win over Gillingham.
The Red Devils managed to compound their Kent opponent’s woes with a 2-0 victory at Broadfield, taking three points on a weekend when fellow relegation contenders Barrow and Newport County also claimed victories.
Kazim-Richards Revels In Debut Success
The big talking point heading into the game against Gillingham was the shock appointment of Colin Kazim-Richards, with the former Derby County man taking on his first senior management role after spending his time coaching in the Arsenal academy system.
Despite some scepticism surrounding the 39-year-old’s appointment at Crawley, the ex-Turkey international immediately delivered with a change in tactics from his predecessor in Scott Lindsey, who was sacked earlier this month.
Speaking to SussexWorld after the result, Kazim-Richards was delighted with his debut at Broadfield and gave his reasoning behind his tactical approach.
“In context of what we needed, it feels amazing. At the end of the season, when the job’s done, I can let you know personally.
“But for what was needed, what the men in that dressing room needed, all the staff around the club needed, and then what the fans needed, it’s amazing.
“I think at the start it was nice, but it was still a little bit sceptical. And then at the end, they were able to see the passion of everybody and the energy of the team, and not just from me.
“I think I need to maybe reel it in a little bit, but in theory we’re fighting for our lives and I just think sometimes we can be a little bit logical and understand that.
“Honestly, I’m not coming like I’m a philosopher or anything like that. I just want to put the players that can score us the goals in the right areas and that’s it.
“It’s very simple in terms of that being [in] the right areas to be able to affect the game.”
Signs Of Life For Crawley
In what is a pivotal weekend for the League Two relegation battle, Crawley crucially managed to pull out a win and keep themselves above the red line following wins for Newport County and Barrow.
The Red Devils looked assured against a Gillingham team that could easily be in the same position as their hosts if not for their early-season form, and managed to break through in the final moments of the match to secure all three points.
The change in formation to have two strikers up front in Danilo Orsi and Tobi Adeyemo looked to be a much better option than Scott Lindsey’s previous set-up, with the latter playing a decisive role in getting Crawley their first win since January.
They head to Newport on Good Friday, with both clubs having some momentum behind them, and a win for either could be a crucial step towards guaranteeing survival this season, while also dragging another team in Tranmere Rovers into the battle to avoid the bottom two.
For Colin Kazim-Richards, he has had a great start to his managerial career, but he will still have to do many more hard yards in the coming weeks to keep this positive start up and avoid a humiliating back-to-back relegation for Town.
