“Physically and mentally demanding” forecasts Viagas

With Lincoln Red Imps due to start their Rock Cup campaign this Wednesday against Lions their president anticipates the next six weeks could prove to be physically and mentally demanding for both club and players alike.
Speaking to Lincoln Red Imps official website, Mr Dylan Viagas who has in the past already expressed his concerns over the risks top clubs face in their bid to keep playing European club competitions provided an insight into the impact of the recent lockdowns and restrictions on the sport.

“It’s been an unprecedented season so far with all the constant changes that we have had to adapt to due to Covid-19.”
“We first saw a delay to the start of the season plus the second lockdown at the beginning of the year, with the added factor of a considerable number of International breaks in between, has forced all hands on deck in order adapt to these changes.
“Trying to secure training grounds in Spain has been an absolute challenge with the lockdowns in Spain and the different lockdown criteria applied by the different Municipality across the border.
“I am sincerely grateful not only to the players but also the Technical Team and support staff who have worked tirelessly together, all determined to achieve our goals over the last couple of months.
“In the football arena we are extremely pleased with not only the last two results against St. Joseph’s FC and Europa FC, but more importantly with the overall performance by the team in both games.
“We couldn’t have asked for better results prior to the International break. What we need to do now is continue with that momentum of good results and performances for the final stretch of the season.
“With nine League matches to complete, plus the Rock Cup competition, all in under six weeks, this will be a massive challenge for all teams.
“We anticipate that it’s going to be physically and mentally demanding for every single player and therefore during the next few weeks we all need to remain focussed, provide all the necessary support to this great group of players and assume minimum risks in order that our players are at Mick’s disposal fully fit and free from injuries.
“We look forward to what the remainder of the season holds in store for us.”
Lincoln Red Imps, like some of the other top clubs in the league resume their competitive matches this week knowing that the bulk of their top home grown players were involved in what was a gruelling triple international header for Gibraltar. Lincoln Red Imps, have themselves suffered from past national team campaigns seeing many of their players involved later experiencing injuries and unavailabilities due to the physical demands on the players. This was highlighted in the first round of the national league where Lincoln saw many of its more experienced home grown players missing after the Nations League campaign and only returning during the weeks prior to the latest international campaign. The club dropping crucial points as new formation of players gelled.
The club now sits top of the national league table after beating rivals Europa and taking the upperhand on the head to head. They, however, face six weeks of non-stop football, alongside the other clubs battling for the title with the prospect of playing into the summer and an early start to the 2021/22 league season, couple with further international triple headers before the end of 2022.