Thompson grateful for home comforts (From The Wiltshire Gazette and Herald)

Thompson grateful for home comforts

9:39am Thursday 8th November 2007 in Football

Football: Devizes Town boss Paul Thompson believes rival teams are quaking in their boots at the prospect of facing his in-form side at Nursteed Road this season, and roared: "It's a fortress."

Fireworks night arrived early for the 35-year-old player/manager on Saturday as his sparkling team blitzed lowly Odd Down 5-0 to secure their fourth straight home win.

And Thompson reckons Highworth Town will be worried about suffering a similar fate in this Saturday's Wiltshire Senior Cup second round clash.

Thompson said: "We've been hammering teams at home recently -we've got high standards and we want to keep to them.

"In the two years I've been here Nursteed Road has been a bit of a fortress, as a club we always do well at home.

"I don't know what it is, whether it's the big pitch that maybe suits us - it's definitely not the supporters because there's hardly anybody here!

"We beat the likes of Bideford, Frome and Barnstaple at home last season and we're hitting form again now, so there won't be many teams looking forward to coming here.

"Highworth will be a tough mat-ch but we're on a high after scoring eight goals in two games, so we're confident."

Meanwhile, 18-year-old goalkeeper Owen Dunn has left the club after losing his first team place to Thompson.

Thompson, who has helped Town to two straight wins since restoring himself between the sticks, said: "No disrespect to Owen, but he's a young lad and he didn't command his area very well.

"Hopefully I am a bit more vocal and can help out the boys -any defender will tell you it gives you confidence when you've got someone behind you who shouts and screams and comes to get the ball."