Gary Neville: "It felt like a really big game for us"

Former Manchester United fullback Gary Neville described Salford’s encounter with Chesterfield as ‘the toughest league game’ he’d seen during his time as a part owner of the club. Salford come away from the game with 3 points after a 3-2 victory over the Spireites, after goals from Zavon Hines and Marc-Antoine Fortune had twice brought Town level.

“I felt that we were under pressure all the way through. I felt as though we had to hang in the game at times,” said Neville, who part –owns the club alongside other members of Manchester United’s ‘class of ‘92’ Ryan Giggs, Paul Scholes, Nicky Butt and brother Phil.

“With your supporters as well, you’ve brought a brilliant support. It felt like a really big game for us. That’s our biggest ever league crowd, thanks largely to the big following you’ve brought.

As for the game itself, the match was a highly competitive fixture, played out by two sides that will be pushing for promotion come the end of the season. Despite another strong showing from the Spireites, goals from Adam Rooney, Carl Piergianni and Danny Whitehead were enough to see Town off. Chesterfield have now suffered consecutive 3-2 away defeats.

Neville was also quick to praise the fantastic away support from Chesterfield, who sold out their 1300 allocation before the match.

“Before the game the players went up to see the fans and the manager as well. You bring the fans with you on the journey. It was a disappointing day for them in the end but you have a great support.”

Following the huge successes that Neville experienced during his almost 20 year playing career, it could be said that Saturday afternoons at the Moor Lane differ from those at Old Trafford. However, he claims that watching Salford has its’ own perks.

“For me the best thing about watching Salford is that it feels real. Committed fans, committed players, the committee members of the club who run the club. Everyone’s committed and it just feels like a family.

“From our point of view, we’re delighted with the growth of the club, but we’ve still got a long way to go.”

Following heavy investment in the last few years, increasing pressure has been on the Ammies to achieve their goal of reaching the Football League. This season is their debut season in the National League, having won four promotions in the last five seasons.

“I think today, even though we’ve won, we’ve seen what challenge is in front of us. Every game is tough.

“You think ‘surely they’ll be a game that we can get a couple goals clear’ but it doesn’t look like that’s going to happen because every team is really committed.

The loss against Salford City leaves the Spireites without a win in two and still on 9 points. However Martin Allen’s men will look to bounce back against Barnet this Saturday.