Post-match reaction from the manager
Neal Ardley said the nature of today's defeat at home to Morecambe was tough to take, but he pointed out that Wimbledon players and staff cannot afford to feel sorry for themselves with big challenges ahead.
Neal lamented the manner of the goals conceded, but he said that his squad must respond in the right way with trips to Accrington and York coming up.
Speaking during his post-match interview for Dons Player, Neal Ardley said: “I am hurt and we are all hurt, but they (Morecambe) were ruthless. Every time they broke on us they scored. The score line is hard to take. If we had stayed at 3-2 and kept on pressing, would it have been any different? It probably would have.
“The score line is the bit that hurts and I can only apologise for the result. The players are down, but we have a really tough week coming up and we cannot feel sorry for ourselves. We have to take that bit of hurt and make sure that the people who come and watch us in the next two games see a team fighting to put it right.”
Neal added that he was disappointed with his side’s defending, which was punished by Morecambe’s impressive finishing on the day.
“It was a seriously bad day at the office,” said Neal. “We knew what their strengths were as they break very quickly and are good away from home, but we aided our own downfall. The first two goals were poor and the third goal was very poor. We gave ourselves a mountain to climb. At half-time we tried to take the anxiety away from the players. We wanted them to go for it and get the fans behind us. For 25 minutes, I thought we did that well and got back into the game, but then it went a bit flat. They mastered it and that’s why we brought on Tom Elliott.
“The fourth goal killed us and for the last 15 minutes we lost all our shape. The sad thing is that the last 15 minutes are what people will remember and the disappointment of it. We made some unusual errors and decisions for us today. The last 15 minutes we were really poor and there is no hiding that. Credit to them because they have come here and put in a very good performance.”
Neal Ardley said that Andy Barcham suffered a knee injury and he will be sent for a scan to assess the extent of the damage after he was stretchered off in the first-half.
The full interview with Neal Ardley is now on Dons Player.