Luton boss Paul Buckle was pleased with the way his troops performed in the goalless draw against League Two Wycombe, despite not coming away with a win.
BUCKLE: PLEASED WITH WYCOMBE WORKOUTLuton boss Paul Buckle was pleased with the way his troops performed in the goalless draw against League Two Wycombe, despite not coming away with a win.
The hosts enjoyed the best of the chances at Kenilworth Road, with Andre Gray and Stuart Fleetwood close to netting for the Hatters.
It was at times a scrappy encounter, but Buckle was particularly pleased with his side's work ethic throughout the 90 minutes.
“I'm thoroughly delighted with that, I think it had everything apart from a goal,” he said. “I thought it was a really entertaining game and there was a lot of realism to it.
“It wasn't a pre-season friendly where we have it, they have it – there was some great pressing from us, some good football and our shape worked very well tonight.
“I'm delighted with everyone, and the big plus is the youngsters coming on as well.
“All the young boys are exciting, we've got some exciting youngsters at Luton and I won't be afraid to play them.
“I thought we did excellently, I thought we had the best chances in the game. I thought the move for Fleetwood's chance was an incredible move.
“I think we looked very dangerous on the night against a good Wycombe side that have just come down from League One so it was a big test for our players tonight and we've come through it.
“There's nothing like playing against really good opposition, and we've done that tonight. It will be another tough test against Ipswich and one the players will look forward to.
“There's a buzz around us, there's a good feeling and there's a togetherness. The Luton fans really like to see work-rate and they appreciated the energy and the legs that we had in the team.”
Luton lined up with Ronnie Henry and Lathaniel Rowe-Turner at the heart of the defence, with Jake Howells at left-back and Greg Taylor at right-back.
And Buckle believes that his makeshift defence was more than good enough to cope with Wycombe's attacking threat.
“We've suffered a few injuries to be honest,” he continued.
“Rowe-Turner has played centre-half for me before, so it's not a problem. He's blessed with that great left foot he's got, and he's got good pace so he can play there.
“Ronnie Henry has mixed his career up playing centre-half and right-back so I knew they were both capable and they came through it great. That was a big plus for me tonight.
“They were a good combination, and we know what Janos can do so it was right to play them two and they did well.
“Sooner or later it's going to be very difficult to pick this team because everyone's up and at it.
“I thought our midfield three worked really hard. We had Yas [Yaser Kasim] in front pulling the strings, and certainly Fleetwood and Gray looked a handful.”
Regarding current injuries, Buckle confirmed that Danny Spiller has an achilles injury, while Garry Richards is still nursing a painful ankle that was aggravated in Portugal.
Buckle is hopeful on Jon Shaw though, and thinks he may play some part in the weekend clash against Ipswich at Kenilworth Road.
“You've just got to be so careful when injured players are coming back,” said Buckle.
“It's a real roll of the dice whether you should or you shouldn't so we've got to be careful.
“But come Saturday it's two weeks until the start of the season and I want to give everyone a fair crack of the whip so everyone has got a chance of being in that starting 11.”
On the transfer front, Buckle confirmed that Aaron O'Connor had left the club as he couldn't be guaranteed first-team football, and wished him all the best in his future at Newport.
Regarding trialists, Buckle announced that contract talks are ongoing with former Hatters goalkeeper Dean Brill, although the Town will not pursue their interest in striker Harry Crawford.