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Jason has been around and we needed somebody that is coming in with a physical presence and that knows the game. Jason has been around a long time and understands and knows what we will be required of him. As soon as I tell him this is what I want him to do he will understand it, because he is at the age now where he has had a lot of games and a lot of experience and has played with a lot of clubs.
He is a physical presence which we need, we think we need, I think we were a little bit lightweight up against Millwall in certain areas on Tuesday. So you have got to have a bit of a mixture of both, you have got to have a physical presence and you have got to have a bit of quality in your team.
I think Jason is certainly going to give us that physical presence and if we can get the ball into him in the right areas, which we did the other night to be fair, then hopefully he can get us a goal or two as well. But he will certainly lead the line for us which is obviously a massive criteria considering the injuries we have got.
JP
I had a lot of sympathy for you on Tuesday because your assessment was spot on there, the only difference between the two sides, and they are a play-off chasing side, was that it just didn't quite happen upfront for you. Is getting this guy going to be the difference do you hope this weekend?
GA
It is going to help us, you are always pretty honest with your assessments and we know what we are all about. We know what we need and we know where we are as a club and we know where we want to be. To be fair we know what we need to do to get there, they are all words, it is not as easy to do what you would like to do because of the obstacles. Without going into too many details it is pretty clear to everybody what the obstacles are.
What we are trying to do is create a team, which we have done, that is going to be improved on what we have got, and keep trying to maintain that progress. That means working exceptionally hard, Dennis (Booth) and myself have been to probably two or three games again this week and we were out again last night trying to make things happen before other people, but it is very difficult.
But Jason coming in has filled a hole for us, filled a void, he is a physical presence that knows how to lead a line. With the injury to Scott (Dobie) now and obviously Joe (Anyinsah) and (Darryl) Duffy out and one thing and another, we have been left with a bit of a gap there. I want to try to be honest all the time, what I don't want to do is come out and be critical of all the players in somewhat difficult circumstances.
But they have needed a boost this week and the arrival of Jason will give them a lift as well, it gives me a lift, it gives the fans a lift let's hope. He can come in and everybody will want him to be a success because that is what our people are like at the football club and certainly our fans as well.
JP
Before and after Vincent Pericard the team has clearly cried out for that targetman, is he that presence then? Is he more than just a fast forward? Can he be that man who leads the line as you say?
GA
Yeah, he is different to Vince, he is similar in the sort of stature but he is a different type. He is a little bit more mobile than Vincent is and probably not as good maybe as Vince with the hold up play. But he has got a bit more to his game and if you put the two together you would have a wonderful player. But he is slightly different to Vince, but he will give us that physical presence up there.
He will certainly knock people about and he will certainly be a pivot for where we can get the ball into and hopefully it will stick and we can work off him. But if you put the ball in the box he will get on the end of stuff and he is good in the air and he has got a bit of pace.
So we are looking forward to putting our arm around him and telling him to enjoy his football and hopefully he is a success for us. Again, with transfers as we have said before, you never know 100% guaranteed if they are going to come off but his pedigree and his background suggest he knows what to do at this level.
JP
I am sure the fans are delighted to see Jason in but the obvious thing is that he can't play in the Johnstone's Paint Final. Are you still looking for somebody else, for all reasons, but also for that one?
GA
I don't think we should be hyping our season up on just one game. I think we are looking at the bigger picture but it would be a massive bonus if we could, but that is a Premier League player or a Championship player basically because all the rest are cup-tied. But if we felt we could do something and we could pull something off we would try to do that.
Because I still think that at the minute if anything happens to a striker then we are still very, very short on the ground. So I think everybody has got sympathy with us to say we need to get another one in if at all possible, the bonus would be that maybe one from the Championship or the Premier League that could play at Wembley. But we are not picking one just for that game, we are picking one to help us over the next seven or eight games.
JP
How likely would you say it was? What chance have you got of someone in? What is it looking like?
GA
That is a question that is difficult to answer because it is up to clubs and availability. Like I said to you before last week, there is a Championship club with seven strikers and they won't let one go. You just think that surely they would want to be playing at this level of football and keeping that player in match condition.
But again, that is no criticism, that is the manager's priority. But we would hope that we could maybe make one or two happen, and we have got to look at the injury situation clearing itself up as well as we go. That comes into consideration as well because Joe has been making good progress and we don't think Scott is long-term.
Obviously Duffers is going to be two weeks but that takes him out of the cup final because he can't play as he is cup-tied and then he can't play against Bristol Rovers because of the agreement. So we are looking and we are going to try to make an effort to do something.