Atrocious' team are no longer favourites

SYLVANS coach Richard Packman has conceded that Northerners are now favourites for the Priaulx League title. Packman missed last Saturday's 5-1 hammering against the chocolate-and-blues, but he insisted this week that his players have 'thrown away' their pre-Christmas advantage and said that there was 'absolutely no excuse for such a poor result'.

'We have now given away the advantage that we had going into Christmas and I would say that North are the favourites now.

'I was told that the only player who came out of the match with any credit was Steve Brehaut. And you can't afford to have 10 bad performances on the same day.'

Packman was in the UK at his sister's wedding while Sylvans were suffering perhaps their most humiliating reverse of the past decade. The Londoner admitted that he was gobsmacked when he was told.

'I was extremely surprised. Maybe, on reflection, we were slightly fortunate to beat them 5-1 at their place earlier in the season, but I was extremely confident that we would beat them again.

'I hope this is a sufficient kick up the backside. We must now knuckle down to get back on top, which is where we should be, but this result was a big dent to our hopes of winning the league.'

Packman said that, despite his players being on the verge of history by winning a 10th successive league title, he was concerned that Sylvans' closest rivals had a bigger appetite for success.

'After nine years of success, it would be fair to question whether we are hungry enough. Do North, Rec. and Saints, having been starved of success for so long, want it more than us? Maybe they do. It's up to us to prove otherwise now.'

Packman has insisted since taking over at St Peter's 18 months ago that North are the biggest long-term threat to Sylvans' hegemony. He showered praise on North boss Geoff Tardif this week.

'North obviously played exceptionally well last weekend and deserved their win. Full credit to them. They are a well-organised team and I am very impressed with the job that Geoff is doing down there.'

Packman refuted suggestions that insufficient preparation and too few training sessions over Christmas and new year were partly to blame for Sylvans' terrible performance against North.

'We could've possibly trained more, but I've had to learn that the guys have got other things in their lives. In any case, from what I'm led to believe, fitness wasn't to blame. The defeat was down to poor aptitude and attitude.'

Meanwhile, Packman did not refute rumours that some first-teamers could be set to leave St Peter's this summer should the westerners win another championship.

'I haven't heard anything on the grapevine, but if the logic is that, if we win another title and break the record, then there's nothing left to achieve at Sylvans, then I can understand that.'

But the former Rovers assistant coach disputed the claim that the Sylvans dynasty was about to end.

'We're not a team full of 30-year-olds. The likes of Ryan Tippett, Matt Warren, Carl Wallbridge and Steve Brehaut are still young and I'm keen to keep on slowly introducing the younger ones like Robbie Holden, Ben Hewlett, John Mortimer and Danny Le Page.

'You shouldn't be too pessimistic about the future at Sylvans. We're still okay.'