Clark Emphatic that premier league relagation is nothing but a ‘bump in the road’ for Luton Town.

May 29, 2024 admin Uncategorized 0

Midfielder staying positive despite Town dropping back to the Championship

Midfielder Jordan Clark believes Luton’s relegation from the Premier League should only be viewed as a ‘bump in the road’ by all those associated with the club.

The Hatters have been on an ascending curve ever since they won the Conference title back in 2013, as the last eight years have seen them finish in a higher league position than the campaign before, also winning promotion to the top flight in that time via the Championship play-offs. It will end with 18th place in the highest level of English football this term, as the required final day miracles needed against Fulham recently never looked likely to happen, Town losing 4-2 to find themselves back in the second tier once more in August.

However, Clark, who joined the journey in the summer of 2020, arriving on a free transfer from Accrington Stanley and going on to play 137 times since, doesn’t think the club should let going down hit them too hard, saying: “It’s probably a good way to put it, a little bump in the road. We’ve had a good crack at it. As players and staff we know we could have stayed up, but we’ve just fallen short which is disappointing, but a little bump in the road to kick on again.

“This is my fourth year now, it’s just been progression. I’ve seen it every single season since I’ve been here. It was happening before I came, first year we were mid-table, then it was the Huddersfield play-off that we just missed out on. Then it was Wembley last year and Premier League this year, so we’re on an upward trajectory.

“I’m a bit flat, disappointed we couldn’t do something special and now in hindsight if you look back to the games where we’ve thrown points away, but I suppose a lot of teams can do that. We all want to experience the Premier League again. It’s the best league in the world, it’s ruthless, you get punished so easily. You’ve seen against Fulham, it summed our season up in a nutshell. I’m sure as a group and a staff we’ll learn a lot from this year and we’ll be a lot better for it.”

One thing that did drastically hinder Luton’s efforts to stay up was a horrific injury crisis that saw up to 13 players ruled out at one stage during the second half of the campaign. Missing first teamers like Elijah Adebayo, Sambi Lokonga, Chiedozie Ogbene, Marvelous Nakamba and Amari’i Bell to name just five was too much in the end and even if boss Rob Edwards played it down in public, Clark knew it was something that needed to be highlighted.

He continued: “The manager is trying not to make excuses, but you can’t hide from it. He probably had seven or eight of his starting team missing for months and months. Elijah was a massive one as well for his goals and we’ve been depleted for a long time. To come up short, so close to the last game of the season, is just full credit to the squad, the staff, everyone.

“People were going out there week in, week out, battered and bruised, we haven’t got the reinforcements to come on and help the team. I’m just proud of this team, proud of the lads, proud of the club. We’ve just got to make sure we bounce back and I’m sure we will.”

Despite having to go into battle with both hands tied behind their back at times due to the number of absentees, the Hatters still made a marvellous attempt at remaining a top flight club, winning numerous compliments along the way for the manner in which they attacked the top teams this term. It saw Clark add: “You can look at hindsight, pinch yourself a little bit and think, you know what, we’re fighting against some of these giants.

“They’ve spent millions and it’s crazy. We know we’re a small family club and the fight we’ve shown this year has been incredible. We’ve pushed the big boys all the way and we’ve got all the plaudits and the praise from opposition managers and opposition fans on social media. Obviously this is like a little step back to kick on again as I’m sure when we come back for next season we’ll be strong.”

 

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