Edwards concedes Molesley will be a loss
Exeter City assistant manager Rob Edwards admitted that it would be a blow to have to play the next three fixtures without having the option of using Mark Molesley.
The midfielder was dismissed at Port Vale in midweek after tangling with Daniel Jones – meaning that he’ll be unavailable for Saturday’s game against Northampton, as well as away trips to Bristol Rovers and Fleetwood. The former Bournemouth man was having an excellent game on the right flank despite being on the receiving end of some unsavoury tackles, and Edwards conceded that it would be a loss to not have him for selection – but also felt that City’s other players will compensate for his absence.
“He’s been doing really well,” said Rob. “He’s as frustrated as anyone to have been sent off. We’ve watched it on the DVD and it was unfortunate.
“To miss him for three games is not great, but we’re going to have to deal with that and other players will come in. He was booked by half time and we discussed whether we should take him off, but it’s such a thin line at the moment for decisions.”
As well as having plenty of talent on the ball, Molesley’s full-blooded nature has endeared him quickly to the supporters and staff at Exeter City. And Edwards won’t be asking him to lose that bite and commitment from his game when he returned to availability for the Gillingham game on March 12th.
“I feel for Mark,” continued Rob. “When we played against him and when we saw him play, the thing we were impressed with was how committed he was. Playing against him, he was a nuisance – and I think he’s been a nuisance to other teams. So we’ll have to keep him on the right edge of getting sent off.”