The football community remains united in grief following the tragic death of Macclesfield striker Ethan McLeod, with Forest Green boss Robbie Savage offering his own personal message of condolence to Ethan’s family and friends.
The former Macclesfield boss spoke to Stroud Times’ Ash Loveridge and BBC Radio Gloucestershire’s Paul Furley at today’s press conference at the New Lawn.
Listen to Robbie Savage’s unabridged press conference
Following the tragic death of McLeod, who died in a car accident on a motorway on Tuesday night, Savage said: “Devastating news. Such a tragedy for the family and friends of Ethan and everybody associated with Macclesfield Football Club. A few of the lads rang me in the morning to tell me, and my heart goes out to everybody at Macclesfield. I’ve spoken to the staff and some of the players, and there’s pure devastation at that football club right now. My heart and condolences go out to Ethan’s family and friends.”
Rovers Sean Etaluku, who was a team-mate of McLeod earlier this season, has been particularly affected by the news.
Savage added: “They’re all absolutely heartbroken. A teammate, a friend. I’ve seen the tributes paid by staff and players, and I’m led to believe he was a huge part of the dressing room, always had a smile on his face. It will take a lot of time for everybody to move on because of the impact he’s had.
“Macclesfield is such a community club and a family club, and this is a huge loss.
“It has impacted Sean. When Ethan scored for Macclesfield, Sean was the first one jumping on him with a huge smile. It’s also impacted Mendy, Tre Pemberton and Neil Kengni. Ethan arrived after those three had left, but they still go back and see former teammates, so I’m sure they’ve spoken to people there. It’s devastating.”
Ahead of Rovers’ trip to Yeovil Town on Saturday evening, Savage provided an update on his squad.
Kairo Mitchell is set to be included in the matchday squad after returning to training: “He’s had three weeks back on the grass, done really well, looked sharp and strong.”
However, Etaluku has suffered a setback which will be monitored this week. Ryan Inniss is expected to be around a fortnight away from returning, while Jordan Moore-Taylor is facing a longer spell on the sidelines.
“Jordy is two-and-a-half months away. I’ve given him a couple of weeks off, especially over the Christmas period.”
Savage is expecting another busy period of recruitment: “We’re going to recruit in January and the model now is there for all to see. Players from lower or the same level, young, dynamic, who want to get better and improve.”
A power failure at the club’s training ground has forced Rovers to train at The New Lawn this week, though Savage hopes the squad can return to Junction 13 on Friday.
“It’s been a little bit of a different week. I like training at the training ground — Nick’s pitch is unbelievable. We don’t want to mess it up too much because it’s one of the best pitches in the league, if not the best. But how lucky are we to go from the best training pitches in the league to the best pitch in the league?”
Savage will allow his players to enjoy Christmas Day with their families but has warned the players to be on their mettle when they report back: “They can spend Christmas Day with their families because it’s such an important time. But I’ll be reiterating that they must do everything right — the stats will tell us if we’re not at it. I trust my players.”
He also expressed hope that loan players will remain at the club despite recall clauses. “They’re enjoying their football. We’ll speak to their parent clubs and we’ll have a plan. We’re in talks with a couple of players to bring in — hopefully we can get those deals over the line, but we’re in big competition. I think we’re probably a couple short right now.”
