George Pilkington is in little doubt that Macclesfield deserved the three points against Forest Green.

With 12 minutes to see out Macc conceded an equaliser thanks to Rhys Taylor’s uncharacteristic slip, but ever-present centre-back Pilkington says no one in the dressing room will be laying any blame at their keeper’s feet.

“We all make mistakes but Rhys has been outstanding, he’s saved penalties, saved a lot of shots and he’ll move on from that,” said the defender after Saturday's 2-2 draw .

“Nobody will be pointing the finger at him in the changing room, that doesn’t solve anything, we’re in it together so we win together and we lose together.

“He’s saved us on enough occasions and we’ve hopefully helped him out a bit in defence with some blocks, so it’s definitely a team effort and when we play as a team and work as a team, that’s when we’re at our best.

“You forget just how many saves Rhys makes, and how well he’s played prior to that goal, that’s the nature of being a goalkeeper I suppose, but he’s a strong enough lad to put it behind him and move on.

"I think we've all had to play in goal at some stage, even if it's as seven-year-olds or something. To be fair you're exposed as a defender as well, these are positions where you need to limit your mistakes and if you can do that then you're halfway there.”

 

The performance was a world away from the disappointment down the road at Altrincham a few days earlier and Pilkington, a key player in the club’s six clean sheets in the first 11 games, said the belief was back on high.

“We were disappointed to only draw but we’ve kept our unbeaten run at home going, which is important,” said the 32-year-old, who made the permanent switch after an impressive loan spell last term. “We were probably the better team throughout the first half and we had the better chances.

“It was a much better performance than on Tuesday, without a doubt. I think it may have been a lack of confidence but in the second half we got some belief back and that puts us on the right foot going into the next game.

“In that last 10 minutes there were some tired legs out there, myself included, and we’ll take the draw but we know it could have been more.

“We’re feeling it from playing a few Saturdays and Tuesdays in a row, it takes its toll so you just have to try to recover the best you can.

“There are a lot of players in the squad who like the midweek-to-week thing, it’s good for the fitness – it takes its toll on the body but you can’t really dwell on it too much.

“Sometimes you wish you were 25 again, when the legs heal up quicker, but it’s part and parcel of being a footballer and as long as you do the right things away from the club you should be there or thereabouts come the
next game.”