12:03pm Monday 6th September 2010
By Simon Fitzjohn
Neil Shipperley feels having striker Charlie Ide at his disposal is reason enough for Walton Casuals to be optimistic this campaign.
Ide struck twice as the Stags disposed of Chatham Town 2-0 on Saturday, taking his tally to four goals for the season.
And Casuals boss Shipperley has backed the former Brentford and Carshalton Athletic man to keep producing the goods.
He said: “Charlie has obviously operated at a much higher level than this so to have him is a real bonus.
“As soon as we got him I knew he would get us goals.
“It is great for this club that we can bring in a player like him.
“He did not play that well on Saturday but still got two goals, and that is the key for any striker.
“He can drift in and out of games and then win it and that is a real asset to have.”
The Stags made it three wins from three at the Waterside this campaign with the Chatham triumph.
And Shipperley has targeted making their home turf as difficult a place to play as possible for the opposition.
He added: “We want to keep our home run going as long as possible as that builds confidence.
“We really need to make our ground a fortress.
“If you have that as a base you can really look forward and you can start thinking about how far you can go.”
Walton travel to Tooting & Mitcham on Saturday for an FA Cup first qualifying round clash.
And the Casuals boss is looking forward to the challenge.
Shipperley added: “These are the sort of games you want.
“We want to test ourselves against sides from a higher level.
“It will give us a good indication of where we stand as a side and we will really go for it.”
Walton Casuals’ next three matches: Sep 11 Tooting & Mitcham (FAC, a), 18 Chipstead (h), 21 Godalming Town (a)
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