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Archived News from March 2002

STUART WATKISS REACTION
30th March 2002 18:23


Stuart Watkiss reaction
Transcribed from BBC Radio Nottingham
It's a big disappointment to lose 4-1 at home. It was a funny game really, as the saying goes. In the first half I thought we were dominant without really playing particularly well. They actually scored with their first shot at goal. The penalty decision on David Kelly will be interesting to see - whether it was or it wasn't. We've had a couple of scrambles in the box, they've got one away with a last gasp kind of tackle. The keeper's made a last gasp save from David Kelly. We've had chances in the first half but we've gone in a goal down. It's not a chance that Rushden have created - it's one that we've given them but fair play to the lad he actually took it well.
You get yourself on level terms in the second half and you just want to kick on, and you concede another sloppy goal. Again it's not one Rushden have created, it's something that we should have dealt with. We didn't and we go 2-1 down and we see too many heads drop. People accept that maybe it's not going to be their day, and poor marking for the third and then you're chasing the game. But even at 3-1 Scott Sellars has had a one on one and just pulled his shot wide and Shayne Bradley misses an excellent chance and within 30 seconds of Shayne missing that great chance to pull it back to 3-2, Angel's popped up to score the fourth and then it really is game over.
There is only so much as a manager that you can do once they've crossed that white line - the game starts and it is down to them. Obviously we're trying to find a solution of how to get them relaxed and how to get them at ease. It's not beyond question that we know they can play. For the first 30 games they've probably been the best footballing team in this division. We proved that we're good footballers, we can pass it and we can play when there's no real pressure on. At the moment we're proving that we can't play under pressure. I haven't come up with a way obviously that can relax them sufficiently that they can go out there and show their undoubted talents. At the end of the day it is down to me because I'm the gaffer. How to play under pressure is the prize question and the sooner we can find an answer. Now we've only got 5 games left.
4 wins out of 5 - is that going to be enough? I believe Cheltenham have won today so that's really done us no favours. But I'm not really too fussed about the other teams. I'm more concerned about how this football club plays, how the players are performing, what kind of character they're showing. Unfortunately this afternoon we've been disappointing all round.
We got ourselves in a great position by playing the kind of football we've just been speaking about. But when you want the lads to kick on, and the football club to kick on, we haven't been able to do that. We haven't scored enough goals and we've certainly conceded too many as well. I'm sure one goes hand in hand with the other. We've got to find that solution sooner rather than later or a real promising season is just going to have a hollow ending.

 

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