JOE BRYAN feels it is far too soon to read anything into Millwall’s opening two league defeats.
The left-back has bounced back from his close season surgery for a hernia and abductor injury to start against Watford and Bristol City in the Championship, as well as the 1-0 cup win at Pompey in between.
Those two reverses at the hands of the Hornets and the Robins mean Millwall are still searching for their first point of the campaign.
And Bryan accepts the best way to make that happen is for him and his fellow defenders to rediscover their resolve at the back when the clock is ticking down in games.
He said: “It is a strange one, the Bristol City game. You are 2-0 down and thinking ‘okay, let’s dig ourselves out of this hole’.
“The previous weekend against Watford we did dig ourselves of the hole so it can be done.
“Then on Saturday at Bristol City we got back to 2-2 and shortly afterwards were 3-2 in front and then we are thinking ‘hold on’.
“That’s something we probably have been quite good at since I’ve been here, grinding out that last 10 or 15 minutes of the game. That hasn’t happened for us in the last couple of games so ultimately we are disappointed.
“But it is only two games. There are going to be other times in the season where we probably will lose two games in a row, so it is important not to panic and to realise we’ve got 44 games left.”
One thing which will potentially boost Millwall’s rearguard is this weekend’s availability of Japhet Tanganga following his welcome return from suspension, a point Bryan was happy to echo.
He said: “You saw from January onwards last season the impact Japhet had on the defence. He comes from a brilliant pedigree at Spurs and he only grew as a player by playing for us.
“Japhet obviously wanted to come back and sees Millwall as a place to build and improve as a player.
“The sooner we get him match fit and ready to go, the better that will be for the team because we want all of our best players on the pitch.”
Bryan added: “Hull are always a very good team. It is another Championship game where anything can happen. That’s why we all love the league.
“We’ve got a few days now before the game to prepare on the training field and we will make sure we are in the best possible shape to attack them at their ground.”