Jake Howells: Teams hated playing against Luton when the Hatters were on song

Former Luton midfielder Jake Howells admitted that teams hated playing against the Hatters when they were in the kind of ruthless form that saw them put eight past Hayes & Yeading on this day 10 years ago.

Doubles from Kevin Gallen and Claude Gnakpa, plus strikes from Keith Keane, Tom Craddock and Howells himself put the hosts 7-0 up at half time.

Craddock then added another on 56 minutes, as the visitors had no answer on the day, in what was the sixth match of a nine game winning run for the Hatters.

They bagged 34 goals in that time as well, before a 1-1 draw at Tamworth broke the sequence, only for Town to then thump Histon 6-3 at Kenilworth Road in the following match.

On the confidence flowing through the side, Howells said: “In any Luton team when I played I always felt comfortable about going on winning runs because every player I’ve spoken to has always said to me - ‘I hated playing against you.’

“When you come in 7-0 up at half time, it was certainly our day and anything we hit was going in.

“You sort of sit there at half time and realise today is the day to grab some goals.

"We could have played anyone that day and still given them a beating."

Although they were eight up with half an hour to go, couldn’t add any more afterwards, or reach double figures for only the seventh time in the club’s history.

On the afternoon, Howells continued: “Being honest I can’t remember loads about the game.

“The result sticks out for obvious reasons and grabbing a goal is always a nice contribution but from the game I don’t really remember anything.

“I think the strikers wanted to get as many goals as they could and if we had got to double figures that would have been a great bit of history.

“With players like Gallen and Craddock, you knew these guys would finish chances if you set them up.

“Kevin was the experienced player which brought so much to a team and Tommy was fearless and could score out of nothing. “

Howells’ strike when it came was the seventh of the day, lapped up by the 6,761 in attendance at Kenilworth Road as he said: “My goal, from my memory it was a close range finish but as a midfielder at the time it’s nice to nick a goal.”

“Coming through the youth and becoming a Luton boy, it was always a pleasure to play at Kenilworth Road but when the fans get behind you it’s almost unstoppable force.”

It marked a very decent time in front of goal for Howells as he netted five times in eight games, on the scoresheet against Kidderminster Harriers, Salisbury City and Histon (twice) as well.

With a career that saw him score 31 times in 334 matches, he said: “That was definitely my most prolific time and I wasn’t known for scoring much but any player will tell you, players go through spells where goals go your way. “

Despite the stunning run of form, with 10 victories from the final 13 matches, it still wasn't enough for Town to take top spot in the Conference, finishing 11 points behind champions Stevenage.

Howells said: “Stevenage were a strong side that season and as much as we pushed them as much as we could, they fully deserved promotion as much as it annoyed everyone.”

Town then went up against York City in the play-off, but back-to-back 1-0 defeats meant another season in the Conference.

It was a tough time for the club as Howells continued: “Play-offs can be a lottery as we found out and unfortunately we just didn’t turn up against York.

“I felt like they were our bogey team for years but to lose in the play-offs is one of the hardest things to take and that’s at any level of football.”

That wasn’t the end of the play-off misery though as Howells and the Hatters were to endure another heartbreaking moments, in the final, to AFC Wimbledon and then the Minstermen again.

However, they finally won their place in the Football League in the 2013-14 season, by winning the title, a special time for Howells, who had been with the club when the were relegated into non-league.

He added : “The Conference is such a difficult league to get out of and we as players felt the frustration when we lost in the play-offs.

“But the season we won the league with over 100 points, that is without doubt the highlight of my footballing career.

“The whole journey that season and the players I played with I now have friends for life.

“The relief when we finally got promotion was incredible and the football clue deserves every bit of success it gets.”