Garath McCleary is expecting a difficult afternoon when Gillingham travel to Colchester United on Saturday.
The winger was a constant threat against Shrewsbury last weekend, setting up two of the goals in a 3-3 draw. McCleary linked up well with Remeao Hutton and spoke about his partnership with the right-back.
McCleary discussed his relationship with manager Gareth Ainsworth too, highlighting the massive impact that he has had over the last few years.
On Colchester…
It’s going to be a tough game. It is going to be really tough. I know a couple of their players, and I have played against their management staff a few times.
Every game in League Two seems to be tough. If not for the physical side, then as we saw against Crawley, a team that can play the ball really well. It’s going to be a hard game, but with the squad that we have got, anything is possible.
Partnership with Remeao Hutton…
We’re in the same car school with Vokesy [Sam Vokes] and Jonny Williams, so we’re pretty close. He’s a really good player and is someone that can bomb on and get around you and put crosses into the box. He can back you up also that way, so as a winger that wants to get at his man and wants to be one v one, it’s good to know that I have someone like Rem behind me that can help me out as well.
His relationship with Gareth Ainsworth…
He has probably helped me in terms of the longevity for my career. He knows me inside and out, to be fair, in terms of a professional aspect. He is someone that has helped me out when I have had personal issues, so he is definitely someone that I would run through a brick wall for.
He’s a fantastic man manager. One of the best that I have had. He will give to you as long as you give it back to him, so he’s been fantastic for me.
In terms of longevity, he has definitely helped me, because I was on the brink of retirement at 33. After going to him with Wycombe, he has definitely helped me out. If I need an extra day of recovery, he will give it to me, because he knows that I will repay it on the Saturday or the following game.
The travelling support…
Our away support has been fantastic. It’s definitely something that I have noticed recently. Especially coming off the ban and being injured, so I have been a bit more involved. It’s definitely something that I have noticed, and at Shrewsbury, the following that came down, and the noise when we scored the goals and at the end of the game was fantastic. It’s something that we hope we can hear more of on Saturday.
