Exeter City manager Paul Tisdale says he is unsure what to expect from newly-promoted Forest Green Rovers on Saturday but warned his team that they would have to be at their best if they wanted to collect all three points at the New Lawn.
Rovers were promoted last season as National League play-off winners but they have found life in League Two difficult so far with three defeats from their opening five matches.
However, Tis says it takes time for teams to find their feet in a new division and that City have to be wary of Forest Green when you take into account the effort and commitment they showed to get promoted out of a very tough division last season.
“It is really hard to tell what to expect with a newly-promoted team because it takes time to establish yourself, find your feet and players to get their bearings,” said Tis. “It normally takes a good 10 to 12 games for those teams to find their rhythm. And they will find it at some point, hopefully, it won’t be this Saturday but they have had a really big effort over the past three or four years to get into the Football League and they are not going to squander it now, I’m sure.
“They will have their sights set on more promotions and more progress. I don’t think we should take them for granted. I don’t think we should do anything over than what we have done over the last five games and try to repeat it. And that is to challenge and compete and do our best.”
City’s good start to the season has been built on a strong defensive showing. However, their last away match saw the Grecians concede three sloppy goals in a victory at Cheltenham. So, is that a concern for the City boss?
“At the moment that game at Cheltenham looks like the anomaly and I am really pleased with the three clean sheets at home,” he said. “If we want to be that promotion team that we are committed to then we have to work on some of our attacking play over the next couple of months but we have given ourselves a really good base with our defences performances and I’d like to keep that going.
City are still without Ryan Harley and Dean Moxey for the trip to Gloucestershire. However, they welcome Kane Wilson into the squad after the West Brom loanee returned from international duty. Fellow loanee Kyle Edwards and new signings Hiram Boateng and Jayden Stockley will also be available for selection.
Travelling to Forest Green Rovers on Saturday? Have a look at our travel guide