Exeter City still gunning for automatic promotion says captain Matt Jay | OneFootball

The South West side are presently just four points off the top three with games in hand over those at the top of the table, after picking up fourteen points from their last six games.

“After dramatic late wins over Swindon Town on Saturday and Leyton Orient on Tuesday night, a top three finish, and automatic promotion is now firmly back in our sights.” stated the Devon-born midfielder in his column for Exeter Live. “Our win over the O’s wasn’t especially pretty”, he continued, “we left it even later than we had done against the Robins but, all said and done, I thought we just about merited it.”

Matt Taylor’s side have been on an upward trajectory since their 0-0 draw at the New Lawn against league leaders Forest Green Rovers at the start of the year, remaining unbeaten in the league ever since.

Unfortunately for the visitors, it was a different story, with the O’s failing to win a game since the 7th of December, picking up just two points in their last eight games, though the Grecians’ captain was still full of praise for his opposition.

“They set up with one thought in mind – to stop us playing – and credit where credit’s due, made a pretty decent fist of it.”

“We struggled to create good chances and with the game goalless going into injury time it looked long odds-on that for the second time in as many matches, we’d have to settle for a 0-0 draw at St James Park.

Luckily for Exeter City, their goal did come, albeit deep in injury time, as Cheick Diabate headed in a free-kick from Archie Collins, ensuring the hosts picked up all three points at St. James Park.

Despite the result, Matt Jay was honest in his assessment of the game, noting that “until that point the game hadn’t been a great spectacle” though was full of praise for his teammates, stating that Cheick Diabate, has “made such a great impression” since his debut against Sutton United on New Year’s Day, and that “credit should also go to Pierce Sweeney and Sam Stubbs who were equally effective.”

The Verdict

Exeter City are clearly playing well at present, their recent form contributing to their league position, four points clear of play-off seeking Port Vale in 8th place, demonstrating that a play-off place is the minimum expectation of the Grecians at the end of the season.

However, with Forest Green Rovers dominating the league and ruining any real chance of a title race, the Grecians will have to fight for Tranmere or Northampton’s spots as runners-up this season.

This automatic promotion push is more than possible for Matt Taylor’s side, only four points away from the third place spot with a game in hand over the Cobblers. It would be a huge surprise to not see the Grecians finish in the top seven this summer, if not the top three, and if the West Country side can continue their current form, they’ll certainly be fierce competitors for automatic promotion.