And midfielder says hard work is paying off
JAMES Morrison insists the secret to Albion’s early season success is simply hard work and attention to detail.The fit-again midfielder returned from a hamstring injury with a bang at the DW Stadium by scoring the opener in Saturday’s 2-1 win at Wigan.
His strike drew him level with top scorers Shane Long, Peter Odemwingie and Romelu Lukaku in the league on three goals for the season – and helped the Baggies secure back-to-back top-flight victories for the first time this term.
“My leg felt fine,” said Morrison.
“There was just a little bit of tightness at the end and after a good week’s training I’ll be fine.
“We played really well at Newcastle away and didn’t get what we deserved and on Saturday we probably didn’t play our best but we got stuck in and got our rewards for the chances we took.
“We went to Wigan with our away form not the best and knowing it would be a really tough game.
“Wigan are a really good team who cause you problems with the shape that they play.
"So to get three points there was something the whole team and squad were delighted with.
“We have got resilience throughout the squad.
"We had that last season and carried it through and the lads were delighted with that because it was hard work.
“We do look at the table - but it’s up to us to keep it going.
“Everyone thinks it’s a bit of fluke us being up there but it’s not, the lads work extremely hard in training, the gaffer sets us up each week to counter the opposition and everyone works extremely hard for the team.
“It has not exceeded my expectations because we have proved that we can do it.
“We worked hard in pre-season and the squad we’ve got and the players we’ve brought in has improved us and the head coach has been great.
“He has set us up perfectly for each game.
“Fair play to the gaffer because he’s done a good job, but you’ve got to praise the players for doing what he’s asked.
“The main thing he has changed is the shape, which is different now.
“We try to pass the ball a bit more but that’s all that’s changed because under Roy we were resilient and hard to beat and that’s what we were on Saturday.”
The Baggies lie fifth in the table, with 20 points from 11 games, but the Scotland international insists you will not find anyone at the club getting ahead of themselves.
“We’re not getting carried away,” added Morrison.
“We all know the Premier League is a tough old season and when you are complacent, that’s when football shoots you down.
“We will just keep looking forward to the next game, keep picking points up and looking forward.
“We have been taking each game as it comes, working hard on that game and then looking forward to the next game.
“In training we’re doing set-ups for the next game and it seems to be working.
“When we get to 40 points that’s when we can look to Europe.
“It’s not an impossible ask but there are some great teams in this league so we’ve just got to keep working hard and see where it takes us.”