Bloomfield insists noise levels are rising as Luton finally hit some form

Town boss Matt Bloomfield believes the noise levels are increasing amongst his Luton squad as they head to relegation rivals Stoke City in their best run of form so far this term.

The Hatters’ 1-1 draw against promotion challengers Leeds United on Saturday made it four games unbeaten, the first time they have done since they were last back in the Championship during the 2022-23 campaign, having taken eight points from the 12 on offer, while a run of just one defeat in six means they have averaged just under two per game recently, giving themselves a real chance of staying up this term.

In doing that, they also ended a terrible run of away form that saw them go six months without victory, as they defeated Cardiff City 2-1 in Wales and then followed that up with a 1-0 success at Hull City last time out to ensure their two opponents were also dragged back into trouble. After a miserable campaign which has seen the players’ confidence levels at all-time low until recent weeks, Bloomfield who has been in charge for almost three months now, is noticing a definite improvement, saying; “Yes, certainly before Hull, the noise levels around the dinner room the night before the game and just on the bus, have gone up a notch in the last four or five weeks.

"The belief and confidence amongst the group, you see it. The connection is hard when you’re not winning, it’s easier to come across when you’re winning games and picking up points as everyone’s more open to discussion and interaction and that’s why, we’ve spoken a number of times about the other things we did during that run to try and build those connections, but certainly the nose levels have gone up a notch recently.

"You can tell the boys believe in what they’re doing, the confidence is there, but we have to keep both feet on the ground as there’s lots more work to do. It’s nice to feel like they’re in a good spot and we keep rolling with it as it’s crucial right now, it’s critical for us to keep that form rolling. There’s no time to drop off, we have to be relentless in our work.

"Whilst we’re speaking about being in a good spot that can soon change, so we have to be aware of that and just be relentless in our work, in our outlook and focus of the work that needs to be done. We’ve got two more games this week starting with Stoke and we’re certainly hungry for more good feelings as it’s nice when you have it you want to enjoy it and retain that. So we’re focusing on us, keep doing our work, keep picking up points.”

Having earned a crucial point against the Whites in the early kick-off on Saturday, Luton then sat and watched fellow strugglers Oxford United shock title-chasing Sheffield United 1-0 at home, with Hull City grabbing a stoppage winner to defeat Sheffield Wednesday 1-0 at Hillsborough. Frustratingly it saw the two teams climb further away from the Hatters, although Derby County’s loss to Swansea kept the Rams within touching distance.

On happenings elsewhere, Bloomfield continued: “It’s how do you look at it right? We have to concentrate on ourselves and we have Leeds at home which we know is a really tough game and we have to be pleased with a point against very good opposition. I saw Daniel Farke’s interview after the game, I thought he spoke incredibly well talking about the opposition, being us, in good form, not representing the position in the table and how they needed to respect the point as well.

"I thought it was a good point very well made. We feel like we’re in good form at the moment, there’s results going to go on elsewhere between now and the end of the season that we have no control over, so we have to concentrate on ourselves and believe in what we’re doing and keep adding to our total.”

In order to do that, the feeling around Kenilworth Road is they need to take six points from their next two games, tonight’s trip to the bet365 Stadium and then when hosting an out of form Blackburn Rovers side at the weekend. The fact that Luton have already tasted success over Cardiff and Hull in games that were deemed must-win beforehand should give whoever Bloomfield sends out this evening some real optimism, as the boss added: “We have to stay calm with it don’t we.

"We spoke before those games about them being must win and nothing will be decided off the back of it. Of course it’s a big game, we understand that and the three points would be vital for either club, so we have to approach it with confidence. We’ve gone to our last two away games and been really pleased with our performance level.

"On Saturday our structure, our shape and our discipline was very good. We’re going to have to do that again away from home and we’re going to have to impose ourselves on the game and make sure our shape is imposed on the game more than our opposition. As we’ve got some good players, we’re playing with confidence, the lads are brimming with confidence at the moment and we have to use that momentum and keep pushing forward.”

Although Stoke still find themselves firmly entrenched in a battle to stay up, sitting fifth bottom and just four points ahead of Luton, their home form has been pretty decent this term, losing just five games in front of their own fans all season, unbeaten in three, with back-to-back victories. Ex-Coventry boss Mark Robins took over in January once Narcis Pelach was sacked, and on the test in front of them, Bloomfield added: “I’ve played against his Coventry teams when I was a player at Wycombe.

"He’s an extremely experienced guy, managed hundreds of games, knows the level, knows the Championship incredibly well, been there, seen it, done it, so I’m looking forward to the competition. It’ll be lovely to share a drink with him after the game and pick his brain on one or two things, I really enjoy that moment with opposition managers.

“They’re a really well organised team though, limiting their opposition to very little at home and carry some good threats, especially in wide areas. The front three behind the single nine do carry a good threat, young full back Junior Tchamadeu we had at Colchester is a really good player as well, we know him well. So they’ve got some good players, are very good at home, but we’re building and we go into it with good confidence.”