On-loan striker settling in well at Boro

STEVENAGE striker Chris Holroyd called Stacy Long “a clever player” after the club’s 1-1 draw with Rotherham United.

The on-loan front man played as a lone striker and linked up well with Long – who was playing in a more central role than in recent weeks – with the two players causing the home side all sorts of problems.

After the match Holroyd praised Long, and the support he got from Long’s fellow midfielders.

“I’ve played up front on my own a few times, it’s difficult but today it worked really well,” Holroyd told The Comet.

“I got lots of support from midfield, from wide areas and I think we dominated the game from start to finish so it worked well today.

“He’s (Long) a clever player and the gaffer wants to try to get him on the ball a lot and I think he can slip those through balls through to me so I think that was the thinking behind that today.”

Holroyd thought he had given Boro all three points in injury time at the end of the second half when he tapped home Yemi Odubade’s pass from three yards, only to see it given as offside.

Holroyd, though, thinks the officials may have made a mistake.

“The way I saw it was Yemi was in front of me, he’s cut it back to me, it’s nicked off the defender and it’s gone forward a bit,” he said.

“I’m running on to it, I’d like to see it again but I don’t think I was offside.

“I think we dominated the game from start to finish. Unbelievably we went in 1-0 (down) at half time and we were really disappointed.

“We had a lot of chances first half, five or six which we should have taken but to get a point out of it is something we can take back to Stevenage with us.”

Holroyd has scored four goals in four games for Boro since he joined on loan from Brighton last month, and the striker says he has settled in well at the club.

“Everyone’s made me feel really welcome, from the lads to the gaffer, all the staff. I’ve been looked after hotel-wise, whatever I wanted I’ve been looked after so it’s been really good and I’m enjoying it.”