Match of the Marsh: Byron beaten by Hatch Lane

Boss Smith remains confident despite his side being bottom of Division One

Byron boss Dave Smith is remaining confident despite seeing his side suffer a third consecutive defeat this season when they were beaten 3-1 by Hatch Lane.

Smith’s men gained promotion from Division Two last year, and since then have found life tough in Division One.

However, Smith is confident that his team’s start is not a reflection of the talent he has in the squad, and is instead down to Byron having played three top sides in the early part of the season.

“We have played three top sides already and the fixture computer hasn’t been very kind to us,” he said.

“In Division One there are five top teams, ourselves included, and then there are some other teams that aren’t quite as good.

“We are yet to play any of the not-so-strong teams yet, that is why we have lost our first three games.”

On Sunday, Smith’s team were beaten 3-1 by Hatch Lane, but the Byron boss has no complaints.

“I am a little bit disappointed, but Hatch Lane are a very good team,” he said.

“They have been in this league for three years and we have not lost to a bad side.

“They went 2-0 up and we managed to get one back, but then the third goal secured the points for them.

“We made some mistakes for the goals, but I have no complaints.”

Byron’s goal came from centre back Laurie With, who Smith pushed up front in the latter stages of the game.

“We were 2-0 down so I decided to throw caution to the wind and put Laurie up top,” said Smith.

“To be fair, he took his goal really well, especially for a defender.

“He brought the ball down on his chest, rode two tackles and then found the back of the net.”

Despite a third defeat, Smith is pleased with what he has seen from his side so far this season.

“We all knew that Division One would be tough,” he said.

“That has proved to be the case, but we are not worrying.

“Like I said before, there are teams in this league that we know we are better than and we will target those games to get the points that we need.

“Apart from Sunday, we have lost each game by just the one goal, which shows how close we have been.”

Smith is also still focussed on the target that he set his team at the beginning of the season.

“We want to finish in the top three or four,” he said.

“We know we are good enough to do that, we just need to show it now.”

This Sunday, Byron face Concordia, a team that Smith knows very well.

“Like us, they’re a newly promoted team too,” he said.

“Last season, they came first in Division Two and we came second.

“I am expecting another tough game as they will be one of the better sides in this league.

“Hopefully I will have my strongest team out on Sunday as some of my key players were missing last weekend, but they should now be fit.”