00:00I thought particularly when he was out on the right he looks arguably even more dangerous, that versatility is obviously very helpful for you?
00:06Yeah, we swapped it, he started off as a 10, went out on the right, I think he came back in as a 10 and then we made the Josh Murphy tub, he went back out on the right and he got his goal actually from being a bit more central but yeah, it shows a lot of versatility and he can put the ball in the back of the net which is great.
00:21And these are the sort of qualities that you've brought into the club before you release, obviously you've got that low centre of gravity, he sort of opens up the pitch really nicely hasn't he?
00:28Yeah and his goalscoring last year was excellent, I think 14 goals in the A-League last year, he's already got 2-2 this year and I think the big thing with us and Seg's is that we'd like to have more.
00:37Here at Pompey Post, John Messina, John, drama, Horsett piece defending, the woodwork, everything going on there, what are your overriding emotions at the moment?
00:47I think that we're going to look back at the game and sort of regret the missed opportunity, that's the emotion I'm feeling at the minute.
00:57Ruin not quite getting going quickly enough in the game and probably waiting until half time to not click into gear, we didn't necessarily click into gear in the second half but I thought we restricted Norwich to very little, built a bit of pressure and ultimately rewarded with the goal and with a penalty that we obviously didn't take the opportunity there but we had more than enough chances to get back in the game.
01:18I thought it was kind of enthusiasm in the first half and not the direct openings but then the goal, you shoot yourself in the foot from set pieces defending really, is that fair?
01:25Yeah we just needed to defend both of those set pieces better, particularly the first one, we just allow a huge gap to open up in the back line there and I think Norwich worked a clever block, I didn't think there was anything untoward there and we should have just defended it better and the way I described it in the dressing room there was a little bit apologetic.
01:40Alright yeah, do they need to try a bit more nails there of your players do you feel?
01:44It's just more aggression I think, more aggression, more desire to keep the ball out of the net, I think when we line up from those wide areas what we need to do is make sure that if we do concede it's going to be at the back post or it's going to be because the ball drops to one of their players on the edge of the box and it's second phase, not a header from the middle of the six yard box.
02:00And then you keep going and then the opportunities eventually come and you're feeling like you're probably a little bit aggrieved with some of the decisions towards the end of the game, would that be fair as well?
02:08Yeah I thought it was a penalty on Conor Ogilvie, as soon as the referee blew his whistle I thought he was going to give the penalty and I thought we deserved that, I thought we deserved that with the build up of pressure so I thought it was a strange decision and one that didn't quite go for us today but that was probably the theme of the day, the penalty doesn't go in, we don't get the second penalty, John Swisswong comes back off the
02:29the inside of the bar, what's his chance at the back end that he's been burying in pre-season, he doesn't bury and that was probably the theme of the day.
02:36Just focus on the penalty, I mean in real time it didn't seem to be one that you needed a repay to see if there was contact or not, it seems from the press box certainly that it was apparent there was contact.
02:46Yeah there was definitely contact and ultimately he brought him down in the box so I thought it was a definite penalty.
02:53But then to go and book Conor Ogilvie as well, that seems slightly perplexing as well.
02:57Yeah I'll go and unpack it with the referee now but I thought it was a very poor decision.
03:01I mean you were talking in conversation with the fourth official in the first half, there were obviously some other points that you were keen to pick up on as well.
03:06Yeah there were a couple, I mean the first goal comes from a free kick on the near side over here.
03:13I thought it was soft and then we didn't seem to be getting the, sort of afforded the same privileges and that was what I was speaking about to the fourth official, just asking for a little bit more consistency there.
03:23Only minor bits really and I think the fourth got a bit annoyed with me so he told me to shut up and sit down and yeah I think if you give the free kick for the goal against then it's got to be a penalty.
03:33I just think there was one with Callum Lang moments afterwards and there was a penalty shot with Callum Lang as well and you're thinking slightly unbalanced.
03:39Yeah that was probably one that, very similar to Callum's one last week against Oxford that wasn't given the other way so I think on balance we can live with that one.
03:48I think it was a decent enough shout and I'll see what he's got to say about that.
03:52Yeah okay well I mean another frustration through all that obviously is seeing Callum Lang limp off as well and that looks, a recurrence of a hamstring injury?
03:59I don't know if it's a recurrence but it's a hamstring injury so we'll see how that gets on.
04:03Obviously that's a worry isn't it naturally for everyone that was here? It was apparent straight away wasn't it? Did he signal to the bench straight away?
04:09I think somebody said he was struggling with a hamstring straight away. I then chatted on to see if he was okay and he said he sort of gave it that one which tells me he wasn't.
04:18And unfortunately actually Murph got down the left and crossed the ball in the boxing that time and that was where Lang would have been I think had he been fit I think everyone was a bit frustrated because we didn't get in the body.
04:28I don't think people necessarily knew he'd had a hand.
04:30No they didn't but Callum would have been there.
04:33And then late, late drama and John Swift with a lovely bit of quality, a couple of inches low on us in the back of the net.
04:40Yeah again one of those days I think where that on another day goes in off the underside of the bar, it just didn't happen for us today.
04:47The chances, the penalty, the penalty shouts, yeah a few little bits and bobs there.
04:52I think we can count ourselves unlucky in some ways but also we should never give ourselves that mountain to Connie.
04:56And Josh Murphy I think was kind of a 50-50 coming to the game, was that the case?
05:00Yeah that's why we brought him off. He's not had a huge amount of training at all.
05:05We decided to go with him today because of the importance of the game.
05:07But yeah we're glad to get through I think unscathed with Josh and Luke to build him up next week for West Brom.
05:12Just one performance in particular Andre, what did you make of his display today?
05:16I find it very difficult to give you a definitive answer after the game but if I look back at some of the moments he had in the second half where he was excellent.
05:24I thought he was all over the place, picked up a lot of second balls, probably disappointed with the shot he took but a real engine in the middle of the park to play.
05:34Well you keep talking about Andre and the natural assets he's got and that ability to drive forward and you want to see that don't you with the ball?
05:40Yeah and he's got that playing in a slightly more advanced position as well, he can drop in and take play.
05:44He can also receive the ball a bit higher at the pitch and yeah we'll be looking to encourage a lot more of that from Andre.
05:49Does Callum setback, does that kind of put a shine of light on the focus and transfers in that part of the pitch?
05:55Probably not because we were focused on adding in the wide areas anyway and that's where Callum had been playing so we still thought that was a real priority to try and strengthen in those areas.
06:05So I don't think it's going to change anything, it just means we're going to keep going in that vein of form.
06:10And with Callum on for it?
06:11We'll know a lot more next week so probably a lot more information on Wednesday.
06:15How do things stand with transfers at the minute?
06:17There's more business to do and there's nothing ready to go quite yet but yeah we're working hard in the last two or so weeks of the window to make sure we get something done.
06:27One player you have been linked with was a move for Christian Bielek, can you tell us anything about that?
06:32Isn't he the one that was playing for Birmingham and now he's gone to West Brom?
06:36Oh that's the one, yes.
06:37Yeah that's the one, I did see that, I saw that. But yeah, as far as I'm concerned he was a Birmingham player and now he's at West Brom.
06:43I thought you might be able to say that. Generally speaking are you looking for a defender?
06:48I think we've got four centre backs, three right backs, two left backs so it's not an area that we're prioritising at the moment.
06:56But if anything pops up in the next couple of weeks I think we'll look at it.
06:59If Tom McIntyre were to go with that then make it more apparent that you would bring in.
07:03Maybe, I don't think Tom's departure or otherwise is going to have any effect on that.
07:08OK, cheers John.
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