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Archived News from June 2004

HASLAM: PLAY-OFF PENALTY HEARTACHE HAS COST £100k
3rd June 2004 22:03


CHAIRMAN PUTS FIGURE ON FAILURE TO WIN PLAY-OFFS
Evening Post, BY STEVIE RODEN, 03 June 2004

Chairman Keith Haslam today said Mansfield's play-off penalty heartache had cost them £100,000.

But the Stags supremo said he was remaining positive despite the failure.

Haslam said Mansfield would have taken big gate receipts against the likes of Hull, Doncaster, Sheffield Wednesday and Chesterfield, who are all in Division Two.

But he is still upbeat after the defeat against Huddersfield and feels the players will draw on the experience next season.

"We are very disappointed and still a bit numb about it all," he said.

"Everybody said we were the best side but we did not get the result.

"The difference between promotion and missing out is about £100,000 but the support has been magnificent and I'm sure we will get good crowds next season.

"In Cardiff, we had a tremendous following and I was proud of all the players and the fans.

"Hopefully, a few more of them will come and see us next season having seen us perform well in the play-off final.

"None of the players or the manager let the club down. Everything about the build-up was right and in the end it came down to penalties.

"It was a harsh decision to rule out our late goal and that was the difference between playing in Division Two or Three.

"It is important we now bounce back. It is hard for the players and they deserve a break to go away and clear their minds.

"But we will come back and be positive, the supporters need to stay positive and we can all move forward.

"We are going forward and getting stronger and this year has been a good venture, but not quite good enough.

"We have got to move on next season and we must be among the favourites to get automatic promotion.

"This has been another experience and we have gone through a promotion, relegation and now this play-off.

"In three short years the players have experienced it all and we have to use that to our benefit. It should stand them in good stead for the coming season.

"People will obviously be down for a few days but we need to get the morale going again."

Curle and all the players at the club, with the exception of Kevin Pilkington, Alex John-Baptiste, Wayne Corden and Colin Larkin are out of contract before the new season begins.

And Haslam says that situation will be dealt with this week.

"We gave them a day to let the dust settle but contracts are being discussed in the next couple of days," he said.

"We want to get the players' contracts out of the way and then I will be happy to sit down with the manager afterwards and discuss the future with him."

 

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