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Archived News from December 2013

COX, DEMPSTER AND GARY ROWETT REACTION
2nd December 2013 12:29


Cox reflects on defeat at Burton
mansfieldtown.net, 26th November 2013

Manager Paul Cox says he can’t fault the work ethic of his players, despite tonight’s 1-0 loss at Burton Albion in Sky Bet League Two.

http://www.mansfieldtown.net/news/article/cox-reflects-on-defeat-at-burton-1198634.aspx?

The Stags were on top when Billy Kee headed home Adam McGurk’s cross to earn the hosts maximum points in the 79th minute.

However, our boss felt we should have been awarded a spot-kick late on, when two Burton players committed offences inside their own area - incidents which were missed by the officials.

“I’m a little bit gutted for the boys, because I thought they did everything but put the ball in the back of the net,” said Cox.

“I thought we at least warranted a point. They [Burton] probably had the lion’s share of possession in the first half, but I thought we were the better side in the second half.

“We were effective, we played on the front foot, and we looked quite threatening.”

Cox continued: “But it leaves a sour taste when there is a blatant push at the far-post, and it is not picked up by the officials.

“The push at the back-post was as blatant as was the handball, but we’ve just got to pick ourselves up. That’s all we can do now.”

Both Ritchie Sutton and Lee Stevenson had to leave the field through injury during the match, and our boss gave an update on their respective situations.

“Sutts (Sutton) pulled his thigh and Stevenson did his calf,” added Cox.

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Stags boss Cox angry over ‘shove’ for Burton winner
chad.co.uk

Stags boss Paul Cox was angry after he felt defender Lee Beevers was shoved as Burton sub Billy Kee bagged the Brewers’ 78th minute winner in tonight’s 1-0 defeat at Burton Albion.

http://www.chad.co.uk/sport/mansfield-town/stags-boss-cox-angry-over-shove-for-burton-winner-1-6278624

Cox also felt the home side got away with a handball in the box which should have given Mansfield a penalty.

“I feel a bit gutted for the boys, they did everything but put the ball into the net,” he said.

“But I have got to question the referee’s performance tonight and the officials. The push at the back post for the goal was blatant as was the handball. It has left a sour taste in the mouth.

“It is the first time I have been threatened to be sent to the stand for smiling at the fourth official. I have never come up against officials like it in my life.

“It was an absolute joke. Some of the decisions were laughable. But that’s what happens when you’re on this sort of a run.

“We have just got to pick ourselves up. That’s all we can do.

“I thought we at least warranted a point tonight and we were the better side in the second half, though Burton had the lion’s share of possession in the first half.”

That now makes the current run five League defeats in a row and nine League games without a win for Mansfield.

But Cox said: “It happens. We’ve been on one before and we will be on one again. I don’t think some of our performances have warranted losing football matches. We deserved a point on Saturday and again tonight.

“You sometimes need a bit of luck. But with the work ethic we showed tonight we will win more games than we lose.

“It can be a very cruel game and you need to have broad shoulders sometimes when things are going wrong. We need to start to grind results out which we looked like we had done tonight.

“We didn’t make any mistakes and kept 11 men on the park. I feel for the lads.”

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Mansfield Town: Paul Cox wants Stags to show 'essence'
http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/25124906

Mansfield Town manager Paul Cox says it is time his players show their true character and put an end to their slide down the League Two table.
The Stags slumped to their fifth successive league defeat at Burton on Tuesday, and are now 17th in the table having sat fourth in October.
Cox told BBC Radio Nottingham : "We've had two-and-a-half years of pleasure, of smiling, laughing and plaudits.
"It's times like this that you see the essence of a football club."
Mansfield made a strong start to their first campaign back in the Football League after a five-year absence, losing just two of their opening 13 league games.
But since their victory at Chesterfield to end the Spireites' unbeaten start to the season, the Stags have only managed to record three draws in a nine-game winless run.
Before losing the nine-goal thriller at Fleetwood last week, Mansfield had only scored three goals in their previous six League Two matches.
"Because of the start we had, expectations levels rise," Cox said.
"I still maintain that we can be successful this season, but people get frustrated, players get frustrated, I get frustrated.
"Things go against you in football, but I'm not letting it get me down. It's up to me to gee the boys up and make sure we put in another performance like that [against Burton].
"It is the second game that they didn't deserve to be on losing side, but saying that it's still two defeats."

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Mansfield Town boss Paul Cox is remaining positive during tough times
Nottingham Post by Matt Halfpenny
IF ever there’s a point in his managerial career that proves Paul Cox is a glass half-full rather than half-empty man, then this is it.

Read more: http://www.nottinghampost.com/Mansfield-Town-boss-Paul-Cox-remaining-positive/story-20239237-detail/story.html#ixzz2m1i3O4SV

Having suffered five defeats in a row for the first time that he can remember since taking charge in senior football, when Mansfield were beaten 1-0 at Burton on Tuesday night, it would be easy to despair.

Yet with a home clash with Morecambe now in his sights, he remains unstintingly upbeat that an upturn in fortunes is just around the corner.

Yes, the pressure will be on against the Shrimps with the Stags having failed to win in nine league games since that memorable 1-0 success at Chesterfield at the end of September.

You would not know it, though. He is only focusing on the positives.

“I thought in the second half at Burton we were dynamic and looked like the team of old where we got at them and put them under pressure,” said Cox.

“I don’t think we deserved to lose and if the players keep giving me what they did on Tuesday night then I think we will win more than we lose. I was gutted for them because they gave me everything.

“I don’t think a neutral would have watched the game and been able to tell which team was on a bad run of results and which was in the play-offs. We just have to stick at it.

“It’s a results business and people are hired and fired on results. But have the players become poor players overnight? No. Have I become bad at my job overnight? No.

“I’ve said it last year and the year before roughly at the same time in the season that it’s the mark of the club is not when you are top of the league and everyone is patting you on the back, but when you go through a tough period. And we have to stick together.”

Godfrey Poku finally made his Mansfield debut at the Pirelli Stadium some 16 months after signing for the club, coming into the midfield in place of Anthony Howell, and Cox was pleased with what he saw from him.

He said: “The pace of the game at Burton was immense and he bedded in pretty well. He did what he was good at.

“We didn’t have many players who were below par and the shape of the side looked good with him in it.

“They put us on the back foot a little bit in the first half and we had to defend well, but I don’t think Mazza (Alan Marriott) had a real shot to save and Godfrey played his part in that.”

Cox’s biggest concern by far is that his players are becoming increasingly anxious the longer their barren spell goes on.

“Of course the players are becoming a little bit nervy because they are only human,” he said.

“The performances are no different to what they were in the early weeks of the season when we were sat in third place.

“You need that little bit of luck, of course, but I believe in making your own luck. When chances fall to players we need to put them away.”

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We were unlucky - Dempster
mansfieldtown.net

Skipper John Dempster believes our side will soon return to winning ways despite our 1-0 defeat at Burton Albion last night.

Read more at http://www.mansfieldtown.net/news/article/we-were-unlucky-dempster-1199402.aspx#hs82pZwGocf9hwRh.99

Substitute Billy Kee headed in a controversial goal on 79 minutes, to earn the Brewers three points, which consolidates their place in the Sky Bet League Two play-off zone.

Dempster believes we were unlucky not to achieve at least a point, especially as Lee Beevers appeared to be pushed in the build up to Kee’s winner.

“(Lee) Beevers was in the perfect position to defend the cross and their centre forward has blatantly pushed him in the back, before the ball has gone into the back of the net,” said Dempster.

“I said to the player at the time that it was a foul and he agreed.

“I don’t want to make excuses. We had a couple of opportunities to score and we deserved a clean sheet, but it wasn’t to be.

“When a blatant decision goes against you and the game has been a tight match, after you have given 100%, it’s disappointing.

“I’m sure the referee didn’t mean to make the mistake, but in my opinion he has made one.”

Meanwhile, the centre-back is confident heading into our home game against Morecambe on Saturday.

He added: “It hurts when you’re not winning football matches, because that is what we have been used to doing at this football club over a long period of time.

“Judging by [last night’s] performance and the effort levels, I’m sure we will be okay.

“We need to believe in what we are doing and be a strong defensive unit as we were [last night]. We need to start scoring a few goals. That said, Saturday we did score four at Fleetwood, but conceded five.

“We’re not getting the rub of the green at the minute. We’re not making excuses, but we had a rough patch towards the end of last season and put that right over a period of time, and I expect us to do exactly the same again this season.”

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Clucas video interview, 28Nov2013:
http://www.player.mansfieldtown.net/latest-news/article/3554922/date/20131128194100/page/0/name/Video;-Clucas-and-Poku-preview-Morecambe-match

Clucas tells Jason Harrison that the referee said the ball did hit the Burton player's arm, but it wasn't deliberate so he couldn't give a penalty. Clucas says that some of the Burton playerws admitted it should have been a penalty.

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twitter

Martin Riley @LifeofRiley6
Absolutely gutted for the boys and fans there! Put all the graft in for the referee to throw it all away! Gonna have to all dig deep
pull together and get ourselves back on track.

Sam Clucas @samclucas
Think the ref had it in for me tonight #Shocking #joke

Lee Beevers @Beeleevers
@samclucas snap

Ollie Palmer @OliverJPalmer
Great support tonight! Come out in your numbers.. Sorry we ain't brought the points back

James Jennings @JamesJennings03
Gutted I'm not involved tonight! Won't be playing this week struggling with a niggle.. Best of luck to the boys! #stags #3points

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Gaffer: Two wins, two clean sheets
burtonalbionfc.co.uk
by Chris Parsons
Manager delighted with tight victories

Manager Gary Rowett admits he is happy to take 1-0 wins all season after seeing his side record maximum points at home over the last four days courtesy of two 1-0 victories.

Read more at http://www.burtonalbionfc.co.uk/news/article/20131127-rowett-1200601.aspx#kyRjpg1yf2b0oPhW.99

A Billy Kee header was enough to separate the sides and Rowett believes on another night Albion could've had more goals.

He told Brewers Player: "There were lots of things to be pleased about, we started well again and had lots of opportunities and balls in the final third.

"We didn't really get any fortune in the first half."

The win comes on the back of last Saturday's 1-0 win against Bristol Rovers and Rowett is delighted with Albion's second clean sheet in four days.

"We had a couple of decent opportunities, I am very pleased with the way we played and it is another clean sheet and if you look at how many clean sheets we've had over the last five or six games.

"I've spoke about how important it is and I cannot complain whatsoever with what we've had."

Rowett also praised goalkeeper Dean Lyness who has now started the last two games following the end of Jordan Pickford's loan spell.

"I wouldn't have said that we were under massive amounts of pressure and Dean (Lyness) hasn't had too many saves to make but he did what he had to do really well and we know he is an excellent goalkeeper."

With two 1-0 wins in quick succession Rowett is happy to take the three points but admits his side have the ability to score more.

"I will take the 1-0's, I am not going to be greedy, I sat here last season when we'd won here 4-3, it makes for a fantastic game but sometimes you'd rather be a slightly duller game and be a little bit more comfortable on the sideline.

"Sometimes you can sense the frustration when you don't win games by lots of goals like we did last season and I can understand that.

"Ultimately it's about winning games and there is lots of different ways to do it," he added.

"I still think there's more to come from us but I felt we created lots of things in the final third but without having amazing chances.

"We've defended really well as a team and we're waiting for that little bit of gloss at times to turn these 1-0's into three or four."

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Latest | December 2013