Jones praises commitment of fans, players and fans
Football
KENWYNE Jones, a former Sheffield Wednesday loan striker, knows his side Stoke have their work cut out if they are to keep their unbeaten run going against Manchester City today, but he is confident one thing that will not be questioned is the Potters’ commitment.
Tony Pulis’ side are on an unbeaten run of 10 Premier League games and have not lost at the Britannia Stadium in the league since February 4. Both those records looked set to come to an end when they trailed Southampton 3-1 at half-time on Saturday and were still a goal behind, and down to 10 men, heading into the 90th minute.
But substitute Cameron Jerome proved to be the hero with a stunning 30-yard volley that earned Stoke a point and kept them in eighth.
Today they go to the Etihad Stadium to take on the reigning champions, who will hope to close the seven-point gap to leaders Manchester United.
Jones said: “We are doing well. We had a few slip-ups but credit to the team, the manager and the fans for the run we have been on.
The next game is the most important for us because we’re going to the home of the champions.
“At Stoke City we play for 90 minutes. If we get beat, we get beat, but we never give up. That comes from pride. This is our job.
“No-one wants to lose so you’re not just going to stand there and accept defeat.”
History is not on Stoke’s side, with the Potters having failed even to score a goal at the Etihad in the league since promotion to the top flight in 2008, suffering four defeats and conceding 11 goals.
Jerome admits they let their standards slip against Southampton on the back of a great performance against Liverpool on Boxing Day, which earned them a 3-1 win.
The striker said: “We set our benchmark high against Liverpool. That was a tremendous performance but this was a little bit sloppy. The games come thick and fast and we have to be a little bit sharper. We didn’t show Southampton as much respect as we should have.”
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Weather for Beverley
Monday 20 May 2013
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