United manager Gary Johnson reflects on the Southampton starlet’s first few weeks at Plainmoor, as Aguiar returns to Swindon.
One of the key components in United’s recent impressive defensive record has been the presence of Southampton loanee Nico Lawrence, with manager Gary Johnson paying tribute to the centre-back’s performance in the 1-1 draw at Woking on Tuesday evening.
“He did very well, and that’s not even me making it up to give him confidence,” quipped Johnson.
“He’s got all the attributes, and I can see why Southampton think highly of him. We’re helping him – Downesy’s centre-half work that he does – and the lad is proper up for learning more. He’s enjoying the experience of playing in the first team regularly, with pressure, with managers screaming at them at half time and at the end, because that doesn’t always happen at the Under-21s – it’s more a development – so there’s a lot more on this, and he’s coped on and off the pitch really well.
“We’re really pleased to have him. We’ve got him until the end of the season so we can rely on that situation.”
The maturity shown by 19 year-old Lawrence in his opening three appearances has no doubt been aided by the calming influence of the figures either side of him in United’s backline, with Dean Moxey also earning plaudits from the Gaffer, alongside another player with bags of experience in Shaun Donnellan.
“Me and Downesy were talking about it in the car – Dean Moxey is a great player, he’s a great footballer. When you’ve got Dean next to you and he’s had all that experience, you can only be comfortable alongside Mox. Moxey reads things quickly, you don’t get to the Premiership and play a few games in the Premiership, if you don’t understand the game, and now he’s using his experience to still affect the game.
“Also Shaun has had a lot of experience as well, so he has really got it both sides, so I’m sure he feels very comfortable.
Meanwhile, the Gaffer also confirmed that another recent loan addition, Ricky Aguiar, has now returned to his parent club, Swindon Town, following the conclusion of his one-month loan at Plainmoor.
“Ricky Aguiar decided with his representatives that he felt that rather than staying for longer, he would go back to Swindon to put himself in front of the new manager, Jody Morris, which is understandable. We wish him well, and thank him for his short service.”