STRIKER James Gray feels Stanley should go into tomorrow’s match at Cheltenham in buoyant mood after giving Leeds a scare in midweek.
The hosts looked set for a smooth passage into the second round of the Capital One Cup as they led 2-0 at half-time. But Gray pulled a late goal back for Stanley and substitute Will Hatfield almost forced extra-time.
“No disrespect to Cheltenham but they’re no Leeds,” said Gray. “We’ll have to adapt to a different style, League 2 is a bit different to coming to a Championship club, but I think we can take lots of confidence into the game.
“In the first half we sat off Leeds a bit. They played three in the middle and we didn’t really get to grips with it. At half-time we changed the formation and felt more comfortable.
“We took the game to them and won the second half. It was nice to get off the mark and they were nervous we’d get another but it didn’t come. Individual mistakes cost us and their goals were two great finishes.”
Winger Kal Naismith, who was the subject of a five-figure bid from League 2 rivals Bury this week, made way for Rob Atkinson at half-time at Leeds.
The Reds' centre-half contributed to a much more disciplined second-half performance, leaving manager James Beattie with some decisions to make for the trip to Whaddon Road, in terms of both personnel and tactics.
New signing Jordan Mustoe hopes to keep his place after coming in for Michael Liddle at left-back to make his Stanley debut at Leeds.
Captain Luke Joyce was left out altogether at Elland Road but Beattie explained that the Stanley skipper was still struggling with a knock he picked up in their final friendly against Chorley. The long-serving midfielder hopes to be fully fit in time for Saturday's game.
The Reds have won on their last two visits to Cheltenham, with Joyce scoring his only goal of last season when Stanley claimed a 2-1 win there in January.
While the Reds opened the season with a 1-0 home defeat by Southend, Cheltenham won 1-0 at Bury with midfielder Joe Hanks scoring his first senior goal. The Robins were also beaten by Championship opposition in the Capital One Cup, losing 2-0 at Brighton.
