Exeter City FC

Exeter City midfielder Lee Holmes says the Grecians will be looking to build some momentum over the Christmas period with games coming in quick succession.

City returned to winning ways with a 1-0 win over Crewe Alexandra last weekend, and despite a tough trip to Oldham Athletic this Saturday, Lee believes the Grecians have the ability to kick on and pick up points.

He said: “We’re in a good position now, it’s been a difficult period for us, we’ve come out of that and I think we’re strong and looking well in training, so we want to make sure we get some momentum going into Christmas and come out with a whole bunch of points.

“We’ve got a busy Christmas period as everyone knows but we want to prepare the best we possibly can and make sure we have a good Christmas period. Probably the last three weeks we’ve trained close to the best we’ve trained all season so it’s difficult when you train that well, day in day out, and we were getting the results we were. In and around the dressing room not much has changed, we’ve kept a high level of training and as long as you do that on a consistent basis then you know you’ll turn a corner at some point.”

On the trip to Oldham, Lee is expecting a difficult test but says he and his teammates will be fully prepared for the trip to the north west.

“We’re expecting a really high energy game,” explained the midfielder. “We’ve seen quite a few videos of them and what they’re strong in so hopefully we can get things right from our point of view and make sure we go there and give them a real game.”

Speaking on a wider scale, Lee believes it has been a positive season so far for the Grecians, and despite the difficult run prior to the Crewe Alexandra win, the 31-year-old believes City are in a good place to kick on into 2019.

He continued: “I think everyone knows we had an unbelievable start. We had dropped off a little bit in terms of points, but I think we’re in a decent position to go and kick on and I think that’s the positive to bring out of it, that after the poor run we had, we’re still in and around the play-offs and with all these points coming up over Christmas.

“You want to come out into the middle of January knowing you’re in striking distance if not better than where we are now.”

An experienced player, Lee has been playing professional football since 2002, and with that comes the challenge of playing through the festive period, something he believes must be managed appropriately.

He continued: “Everything in moderation, don’t eat too much, don’t drink too much and make sure you sleep well. I’m like a little kid to be honest, getting up early, but I think it’s just everything in moderation because as a professional you know what’s needed. You know what you need to do to make sure you’re in the best possible shape.”