English Football League / Ben Herd / 14 October 2009 /

Ben celebrated his first home start since returning from injury with a 4-1 win over Morecambe. The visitors' Stuart Drummond managed to put his disappointment at the result to one side for long enough to chat to Ben....

It was nice to be playing at home this week, after clocking up over 1200 miles in our previous three away games. The game against Morecambe was my first start at home since returning from injury, and it was pleasing that we were able to keep ourselves in the pack at the top of League Two, even if I was running on empty for the last 20 minutes! Once again, I had the opportunity to interview an opposing player for betting.betfair.com. Stuart Drummond was the man in the hotseat this week.

So Stuart, What did you make of today's game?

Well, with the way Aldershot play it was always going to be an open game and this one didn't disappoint. In the first half, there were plenty of chances for both sides, and unfortunately we didn't capitilalise on any of ours and found ourselves 1-0 down at the break. In the second half, Aldershot seemed to dominate possession a lot more, which was probably helped by scoring an early second goal. On reflection, it was a game of chances; Aldershot seemed to make the most of theirs and unfortunately we were left to rue ours.

Morecambe seem to have bucked the recession, by increasing their playing budget for the season. Have expectations increased for this season as well?

Not really. At the start of the season we were looking to finish above last season's standing, which was 12th. Judging by the teams we have played so far this season, there is nothing to really be scared of, so even after a sluggish start we aren't going to write the season off just yet. We have drawn 8 games already this season, and most of those games have been against teams occupying the automatic and play-off places, so there is no real reason why we can't edge ourselves into the play-off push if we put a good run together.

With a new stadium on the horizon, the future looks bright for Morecambe. Should we be buying shares in the club?

I think in this day and age, getting a new stadium is an absolute necessity. This is our third season back in the League, which have been consolidation years really. To go to the next level you have to start generating extra revenue other than people through the turnstiles on match days. I believe that the new stadium will incorporate a restaurant, banqueting facilities and so on, and hopefully this will enable us to increase the budget further in order to attract better players who can take us to the next level.

You have been in League Two most of your career - has any player caught your eye this season who may ply his trade at a higher level in the future?

Apart from yourself ha ha, Jimmy Ryan, at Accrington Stanley. I think he is a decent central midfielder, who has had a good education in the game at Liverpool's academy, and he had a fantastic first full season in League Two scoring a lot of goals from midfield. I was surprised Shrewsbury didn't keep hold of him, but it has probably helped his progress by playing regular 1st team football for Accy and I am not surprised a few bigger clubs are reportedly interested.

Do you have any plans as to what career you may forge yourself after Football?

I have recently completed Level 2 and 3 coaching badges, so ideally I would like to stay in the professional game. It is a case of waiting to see what opportunities come my way. I also have a degree in Sports Study and History. As a bit of a safety net, I could always end up as a PE teacher or something similar, we will just have to wait to see.


Football

Favourite Premier League Player? Fernando Torres
Favourite player outside the Premier League? Thierry Henry
Manager you'd most like to work under? Arsene Wenger
Club you'd most like to play for? Glasgow Rangers

Best mate at the club? Jim Bentley
Messiest eater? Aaron Taylor
Biggest ladies man? Craig Stanley
Who's best at putting away the pints? Jimbo (Jim Bentley)

Non-football

Dream date? Britney Spears
Favourite TV programme? The Inbetweeners
Favourite shop? Sainsbury's
Worst vice? Guinness
Biggest pet hate? Littering

50/50

Meat or fish? Meat
Wine or beer? Beer
Blondes or brunettes? My Wife's Brunette so......
"Friends" or "The Office"? The Office
PS3 or newspaper? Newspaper
Frank Sinatra or Fifty Cent? Frank Sinatra

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