Gary Johnson says his strikers must do considerably better if Bristol City are to halt their downward spiral. A return of two wins in 17 games has seen the Robins drop out of immediate play-off contention in the Coca-Cola Championship and exit the FA Cup. And manager Johnson today highlighted a continuing lack of goals as the biggest single contributory factor in his team's fall from grace. City have scored just once in their last five outings and again fired blanks when losing 2-0 to Watford at Vicarage Road on Tuesday - despite starting the game with three forwards. Johnson fielded David Clarkson and Alvaro Saborio alongside big Patrick Agyemang, yet City's frontline struggled to create a single worthwhile goal-scoring opportunity against the Hornets. Given the injuries and illness which have laid low top scorer Nicky Maynard and fellow attackers Jamal Campbell-Ryce and Danny Haynes, the manager faces a giant-sized headache as he bids to instil a cutting edge ahead of tomorrow's difficult assignment against Sheffield United at Bramall Lane. Johnson accepted personal responsibility for defeat in Hertfordshire and admitted his tactics in the first half had backfired. But he also questioned the contribution made by his strikers and warned: "We need to be much, much better up front. "Who knows what the score would have been had I decided not to change the team around? What I do know, though, is that we have to produce more quality going forward. We need someone to stand up and be counted. In fact, we need two people to stand up and be counted and put their names down for our striker roles."
Bristol Evening Post
Dean Gerken has warned his Bristol City team-mates against the dangers of being drawn into a relegation dogfight. Although City are in 13th place in the Coca-Cola Championship table, a disappointing return of two points from the last four games means they are now nearer the relegation zone than the play-off positions for the first time this season. Bookmakers William Hill make City 9/4 to be relegated and price them at 9/1 to make the play-offs. Goalkeeper Gerken knows just how easily a run of poor results can degenerate into a full-scale decline, having suffered the bitter blow of relegation from the second tier with Colchester United in 2008. "I know what it's like to be at the bottom of the league, and you really don't want to go there," said Gerken, who left the Us to join City last summer.
Bristol Evening Post
Injured Bristol City defender Jamie McCombe has been re-assured by Robins manager Gary Johnson that he still has a future at the club. The centre-half has been out since November with a knee injury and has been told the troublesome joint will not clear up in time for him to feature again this season. But McCombe still has just under 18 months left on his contract and Johnson insists he is a part of his future plans. "Every now and again a situation occurs where someone is really unlucky and that is the case with Jamie. He's signed a contract and then been ruled out by long-term injury," he said.
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