Crawley Town held League Two leaders Walsall to a 1-1 draw at the Broadfield Stadium - but should have taken all three points. Here is Scott Lindsey's reaction
00:00Scott, thank you for joining us. On paper that's a really good point, but looking at the game, it could have been more, couldn't it?
00:05Yeah, it should have been. I thought we were excellent today, better side by a mile, completely dominated the game,
00:14created loads of chances again, and we don't put them away.
00:21Which is a trend at the moment we've got to get out of because we can't keep creating that amount of chances and not taking them away.
00:34And then we dropped two points because of it. I thought as a team we were excellent.
00:39I thought defensively we looked solid, defended the box really, really well, could have done better on the goal maybe for sure.
00:47But proud of the team because we just outplayed the team, we were top of the league and we proper outplayed them as well.
00:59So we've got to take encouragement from that and move on with it because we've got to start winning games.
01:07I felt that we deserved to win that game today. I thought we did enough to win it. I thought we were excellent.
01:14Some really, really good, solid performances. I went really courageous with my team selection,
01:24played three forwards against the team who were top of the league. So I thought we worked on it all week
01:29and it looked amazing in training all week. So it was real courage from me to do that against the team who were top.
01:38But I just felt that we could create a lot of goals by doing that. And you could see with the chances we created, we did.
01:48We just got to get out of this habit and not being able to put the ball in the net.
01:52There's some unbelievable chances again. Guilt edge again. I'm saying the same old things that I've said nearly every week.
02:01But listen, we've got to take the positives. The positives are that we were outstanding with the play today and deserved more than a point.
02:09Yeah, and that is, I suppose, a big shame, isn't it? Because that performance deserved three, four, five goals.
02:14Obviously, you've got the penalty missed early on. You've got the, you know, McCurdy, you know, great save and then cleared off of the line.
02:19As you say, they're what seems like guilt edge chances. But on another day, those fly in. But at the moment, it seems that other day is never coming for us.
02:26That other day, he's not been here yet. I haven't seen it. You know, it's a pattern at the moment. We could show you a 10 minute video reel of our missed chances at the moment.
02:38It's not, you know, it's not good enough. We can't play that well and not win. But it's kind of like the pattern of what we are at the moment.
02:47You know, I can coach the team to get to that point, but we've got to be able to put the ball in the net.
02:53Yeah, so, I mean, you look at all the stats, I don't know, I haven't really looked at them, but I know they'll be all in our favour.
03:00Everything, you know, everything will be in our favour. XG, shots on target, shots off target, touches in the box, everything will be in our favour.
03:11Possession, obviously. And I thought we, I thought we, our running stats were good today. We look powerful. We look strong.
03:22They're probably the strongest team in the division for that. And I thought we, I don't think we matched them. I thought we overtook them for that.
03:29I thought we were really good today.
03:31Yeah, as you say, one of the big positives to take is the defensive performance. We spoke in recent interviews about how it's been disappointing to see some of the manner of the goals that we've been conceding.
03:39But today we, you know, it takes a worldly strike to, you know.
03:42Yeah, no, no, no, it was a good strike. But we could have crunched the pitch a little bit better when he's come inside. I felt we could have engaged the ball and got out of the box a little bit better than we did.
03:52But it's me being nitpicky. I thought we were outstanding at the back. You know, the three defenders defended so well all game.
03:59And they asked a lot of questions of us, obviously, with long throws and corners and bits and pieces.
04:03Big Aidan and Flint around the back all the time. And I thought we dealt with it really well in, you know, in the hole.
04:09We've got to put the ball in the net at the other end. We do that. We do our job at the other end. We win the game.
04:14Yeah, forced into a couple of changes today with obviously people missing on international duty and suspension as well.
04:19Max Anderson, brilliant performance. But I want to especially mention Scott Malone.
04:22It's his first 90 minutes in God knows how long. And we were just talking here before the interview.
04:26Probably one of, if not the best player on the pitch today, but it will fly under the radar.
04:30Yeah, he was brilliant. I thought he was outstanding. Just his now and experience and, you know, communication skills
04:37and just his presence on the pitch is a big, big plus for us. And I thought he was brilliant.
04:43Yeah, he tied towards the end, obviously, because he's not played a lot of football of late.
04:48But yeah, he was outstanding. Really, really good performance from him.
04:52Yeah, big reception from the fans at the end. I think it was clear to see.
04:55And it was a good crowd as well, obviously, at the international break.
04:57And it was clear to see for everyone in here that the lads threw, you know, they're 110% of that today.
05:01And it was, you know, it was a good reception at the end. It was nice to see, wasn't it?
05:04Yeah, for sure. I think when you're playing the team at the top of the league and you dominate the game in that manner
05:10and you create that amount of chances, I think it's clear that we're millimetres away from being a really good side.
05:22Millimetres. And we'll get there because I'll make sure we do. It's my job to make sure we do.
05:27And keep everybody bubbly and going in the right direction.
05:33We've got to take a lot of heart from that. A lot of courage went into that game.
05:37We've got to take a lot of heart from that performance.
05:40Because we, like I say, in my opinion, I felt we outplayed the team at the top of the league
05:46and deserved to win that game.
05:48Would you, apart from the finishing, would you say that's the most complete performance of the year?
05:53Yeah, it's our best performance by a mile, by a mile and four.
05:57And the pleasing factor for me was, I thought we were brilliant in the first half, like outstanding.
06:03And they changed a little bit in the second half.
06:06They kind of stepped forward a little bit and put a little bit more pressure on us, but we continued.
06:10So I felt it was a 90 minute performance today, which we've not seen many of them.
06:14We've played well in one half or the second half.
06:17We've turned up and started playing in the second half and wasted the first half.
06:20Today I thought we were a very, very good old game.
06:23I thought we stuck at it.
06:24The stats would probably be slightly lower in the second half, but that's to be expected
06:29because they come and had a go.
06:31But I still think that we, yeah, it was our best performance, definitely.
06:35And you said on Thursday, I think it was, you said on a couple of occasions
06:39there's been times where the goal's gone in, heads have dropped, but that didn't happen today, did it?
06:43No, I actually made reference to that before the game.
06:47We're not always going to get it our way.
06:48So if we do go a goal down or they equalise, I don't want to see any rounded shoulders and heads down.
06:53That can't happen.
06:54We've got to be able to play through hard times and see it through because the game's 95, 96, 97 minutes long.
07:02And we've got to continue because it only takes a second to put the ball in the net.
07:06We've got to continue and I felt that we did that really well today.
07:10Yeah.
07:11And after the penalty miss, although there was a quick dreams break, you said something,
07:16I was watching and you said something to Harry McCurdy.
07:18What did you say to him?
07:19If you're allowed to repeat it.
07:21Yeah, I'm not probably allowed to.
07:24You said it with a smile on your face.
07:26Yeah.
07:27Encouragement.
07:28Yeah, it was encouragement.
07:29Yeah.
07:30Excellent.
07:31And before the game as well, I saw Danny Cashman and Jay Williams warming up.
07:34That's a positive sign, isn't it?
07:35Yeah.
07:36Positive sign.
07:37Seeing both of them back on the grass is a positive sign.
07:41So there's still probably a number of weeks away, probably Danny Cashman closer than Jay.
07:48But Jay, you know, listen, Jay's in the dressing room rallying the troops up at half time.
07:54He's on the bench next to me.
07:56He's rallying the troops.
07:57He's giving information out on the sideline.
07:59He's a true leader and we want him out on the pitch at ASAP.
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