Sam Vokes said there were positives to take from Tuesday's game at Colchester, despite conceding twice late in the tie to lose 2-1.
The former Wales international was pleased to see five academy graduates get onto the pitch during the match, competing against a strong League Two side.
The forward scored the opening goal of the game, kneeing Lenni Cirino's ball across the box into the back of the net. Vokes discussed his goal and was pleased to get more minutes in the tank.
At 35 years old, with experience at the Premier League and international level, Vokes spoke about the responsibility of being a mentor to the younger players at the Football Club, and how pre-season allowed him to begin doing so.
On the game…
It’s very frustrating with the result in the end, but I do think that there are positives to take from it. We got ourselves 1-0 up and managed the game well. As the games are sometimes in this cup, we made a lot of changes, which is what I see as a positive. I think that the changes we made show the strength of our squad.
We finished the game with five academy graduates on the pitch, and that’s great for them. In a matchday environment against a proper League Two team, themselves, it felt like a proper game. Sometimes these cup games don’t, but it felt like a proper game tonight.
On his goal and his game…
The ball has gone over my head, so I have just reacted and thought that there is only one place, unless he scores, where he’s going to put it, so I managed to get something on it. I kneed it, I think, into the bottom corner.
It was nice to get on the scoresheet, and I played 45 tonight, so for me, it was stepping up those minutes from what I have added off the bench so far this season, and it was good to get some match minutes in my legs.
Being a mentor to the younger players in the squad…
I see it personally, and I think that a lot of people should see it as a senior player to have that responsibility on yourself. Coming back from my injury in the pre-season, I spent a lot of time with Joe [Dunne], the under-18s manager, and their squad in their training sessions and training alongside them. It’s great because you get to know the lads, and hopefully, they can look up and see us senior lads and see the pathway there that’s available.
I think that’s part of my responsibility as a senior player to help and guide those players along, so what I can do for them is good.
