By Brian Bennett | Photo: Ian Brodie

Ashington FC skipper Karl Ross has spoken about the influence which manager Ian Skinner has had on his career – as well as saying the rest of the squad at the Woodhorn Lane based outfit ‘love playing under him.’

On Saturday, the Colliers got the perfect pick-me-up tonic ahead of Thursday night’s semi final clash in the Newcastle Flooring Northumberland Senior Cup against Newcastle U21s with a 2-0 win over North Ferriby which brought them their first three points in April.

Skipper Ross said afterwards: “We’ve signed off our league games with a win and the lads are buzzing. Obviously the past few weeks haven’t been good enough by our standards – we couldn’t really buy a win – so to secure victory against a good side in North Ferriby is what we needed and with it being the boss’s last league game in charge, it’s what the occasion needed. Now we can look forward to the clash against Newcastle U21s on Thursday.”

Ross spoke from a personal level about Skinner’s enthusiasm and dedication to the position as manager of the Woodhorn Lane outfit: “I’ve been at the club for five years and have loved every minute of it,” he said, “Ian Skinner has been a big part of it so I can only thank him for what he has done for me. He’s brought me on as a player and obviously now as captain and a leader in the dressing room, I’m grateful to him for that and wish him all the best for the future.” Speaking on behalf of the players Ross added: “The lads buy into what Ian Skinner does. We play good football and he’s a good manager. He has got a wealth of knowledge that the lads thrive off – and we love playing under him.”