00:01So, first defeat in 7-8, John, a really good test against a side right up there.
00:08And I thought in the first half, you looked right at it, but you just couldn't get that breakthrough.
00:13Well, let's turn him up, sorry.
00:15It's disappointing because people that give us a walk-over, are you playing top of the league, you're not expected
00:20to win.
00:20I expected us to win tonight.
00:22I think they were, they'd come in a fragile state.
00:27Gifted them the first goal.
00:28So, we were wasteful of opportunities before they scored and after they scored.
00:35But we had this, we had this propensity to just play the ball backwards and sideways.
00:43And you were going to go nowhere with that.
00:45They dropped really deep.
00:47They were there to be got at and we didn't get at them.
00:51They've had three shots on our goal all day.
00:55But I'm disappointed I got the shot off in the second one.
00:58And I think Conor will be disappointed that it's gone in.
01:02But then they've had another one where we're trying to go forward and they've counted on us.
01:07And that's it.
01:08So, you know, they didn't come in a good frame of mind.
01:13They were there to be beat.
01:15And ironically, winning the game on Wednesday was maybe a tougher game than what we had today.
01:22But, you know, they could count on us then at will in the second half because we get a bit
01:27desperate.
01:28You could see in such a sloppy goal.
01:31But our passing was nowhere near up to speed.
01:35We didn't take our chances when they presented themselves and there was three or four good chances.
01:40And I think if Kwame Zeta goes in, I think we'd probably go and win the game.
01:44But, you know, that's what's made us good.
01:48We've been clinical in our finishing.
01:50Today we were poor.
01:51We were poor with our passing.
01:53You know, the volunteers and the people who work on the ground do a great job to get the game
01:58on.
01:59But the pitch was just nowhere near conducive to playing football.
02:03You know, you can see it now.
02:04I can see it when it went off.
02:05So it was difficult to pass the ball.
02:07But our choice of passes, I thought it was poor.
02:11We give the ball away too cheaply.
02:13And I'm not going to stand here and just eye behind over there at the top of the league.
02:18Because at this moment in time, we're more an informed team than that.
02:25And I think that's your opening first half.
02:26You know, we were the ones on the front foot.
02:29And we got picked off.
02:30You know, they had the goal that they scored.
02:34And then they had one that the lad blazed over in the 43rd minute.
02:38That was the sum total of them going there that goal.
02:41So I'm disappointed we've lost the game.
02:44I'd have been disappointed with a draw.
02:45You know, and I'd have put your hand off for a draw in the last five minutes.
02:49But I'm raging inside about losing the game.
02:54And this is no disrespect to Jim or anybody from Rochdale.
03:00But that was more winnable than the last three games that we won.
03:03So that's the frustrating thing for me.
03:05Yeah, you've had at least one injury today.
03:07It looked at Harry Gander or looked in some discomfort when he went off.
03:10Is that hamstring or too early?
03:12No, we've had a lot of injuries today.
03:14So we've had Matt Penny sick.
03:15We've had Sam Inwood go off injured.
03:19We've had Harry Gander go off injured.
03:23So, you know, if you look at the back four that we finished with today, there's only one.
03:30And, you know, when we made the subs, we did look really just tilted.
03:35And that's not a disrespect to the players who are coming up.
03:37They just haven't had a lot of football.
03:41So, and I don't want to use that as an excuse.
03:43Because we're all saying together, we're all part of the same unit.
03:49But we could have been playing until nine o'clock tonight.
03:52We wouldn't have scored.
03:53Because we didn't have that impetus to score.
03:56We didn't put enough balls in the box in the first half.
03:59And then when we did put the balls in the box in the second half,
04:01they weren't quality balls or we didn't get people in there.
04:04And then when the chances did present ourselves, we didn't take.
04:09No, unfortunately, Watmuth didn't have a save to make.
04:11That he could split those six or seven chances in the first half.
04:14Every single one of them was either blocked or missed the target.
04:16Or on the butt.
04:17Yeah.
04:18We'll have a week.
04:20I guess there'll be mixed feelings about that.
04:22Sometimes when you lose, you want to get back on the horse as soon as you can.
04:25But equally, you've had those knocks with the injuries today.
04:28And you'll have a week to prepare for Forest Green away next weekend.
04:31And I'm sure you're going to that one in a similar mindset to you did today.
04:35Let's go out there and try and win.
04:37We'll have a big game.
04:40But I was talking to Terry Brown before the game.
04:43And we were talking about luck and how much it presents itself to you.
04:49And you can't buy it.
04:51You can't guide it.
04:52It just happens to you.
04:53And we had a little bit of luck over the last couple of games.
04:59And they've had a lot of luck today.
05:01You know, how their number nine has on my boot is beyond me.
05:06The lads who broke Ryan Jones' leg last year should have been set off for the challenge that he could
05:16have got away with not being a foul.
05:18But he's lifted his leg.
05:18And once you lift your leg, you're in danger of hurting someone.
05:23And then the top half for me was the lad not getting booted, the foul in the last minute.
05:29You know, I just don't know what a booking is anymore.
05:31And we seem to get them quite cheaply.
05:41But you need little bits of luck.
05:57And today, we had no luck.
06:00Well, we had a little bit of bad luck.
06:03But we didn't make our own luck.
06:05We didn't put the ball into areas where it can benefit you.
06:09And we were too guilty of playing 20, 30 passes and then going long right through to the headkeeper.
06:16Our passing was put.
06:17And that ultimately has cost us a game.
06:20You used, for some weeks, the reverse against Solihull here to help to teach, tweak, motivate the players for the
06:29next games.
06:29What will you take from today's disappointing defeat to try and just inject things back to the level?
06:35That was nowhere near like the Solihull game.
06:38You know, we were in the game right to the end.
06:41And I think if we'd have scored at any time there, we'd probably score again.
06:44That's what I kind of meant.
06:45In a different sort of way, how would you use it?
06:46Because they're in a fragile stage, what's there at the moment.
06:51But we've got to learn.
06:53Now, you know, the chances that were bobbling about in the first half, we had to poach it.
07:04You had a Sean Patton who might have poked one of those in.
07:06Well, that's his game.
07:08And that's the idea.
07:09And I said that to Terry before the game.
07:11I said, you know, they get the ones that are going off the backside.
07:15They get the ones that are Johnny on the spot.
07:18It's not luck.
07:20It's being a good predator.
07:23And, you know, their lad's been clinical because he only had two chances in the game.
07:28He barely got a kick.
07:30So, but he's been wonderfully efficient with them.
07:33With two good goals, two good, really good finishes.
07:35From this point of view.
07:37And we didn't have that today.
07:39You know, we didn't have that.
07:40Kwame a little bit rusty.
07:41He's been out for a while.
07:44But we didn't have a player.
07:45Charlie, again, has been out for a couple of weeks.
07:48We didn't have someone who could unload the shots.
07:50And as you say, that game hasn't made a save.
07:53We've got a couple of blocks.
07:57And we've put three over the bar in the first half.
08:00That was ridiculous.
08:01You know, for the chances that, you know, Sam's in an unbelievable position at 0-0.
08:06And he puts it over the stands.
08:08And it's not the first time Sam's done that.
08:10So, that's something he's got to line out of his game.
08:12And he gets an opportunity.
08:14He's got to hit the target.
08:16I think if we'd have hit the target, it's a time to go.
08:19Ended on a positive.
08:212800 and something in the stadium.
08:23And that's all we can do.
08:24As you said this week, keep the only way that we can get better budget, better players, etc.
08:30Is to get more people through the door.
08:32And they're starting to come.
08:33Yeah, and, you know, they stuff with us the whole game.
08:35So, you know, a big thank you to that.
08:37But, if we, they'll go home and have lost.
08:41And that's what matters to football fans.
08:43It's not how you play, it's the score.
08:46And we haven't delivered the score that was more than, more than capable.
08:49We were more than capable of winning that game today.
08:52We've won the delivery.
08:53Thank you, John.
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