Johnnie Jackson admitted that our side’s habit of losing closely fought games is starting to become too regular an occurrence.
Wimbledon started slowly in both halves, conceding goals shortly after kick-off and half-time as we failed to come out of the traps quickly. Ultimately, it cost the Dons dear and in the end we found ourselves on the end of a 3-1 defeat.
“I’m annoyed,” said Johnnie. “It’s another game we’ve lost when there wasn’t too much between the two teams. It’s really starting to grate.
Watch the full interview on our Official YouTube Channel.
“All week we spoke about starting fast. The first goal came from a set piece, which is something we’ve worked upon. It’s going to be difficult for us to win games if we keep conceding first.
“After the equaliser I felt we were the better side. We had some good chances to score that we didn’t take. We were in the ascendancy and then we conceded again within four minutes of the half starting. It’s frustrating.”
We came into today’s game with more injuries added to a growing list, meaning that our manager had to shuffle the pack.
Ryley Towler came into midfield and impressed with his overall play, as well as scoring his first goal since joining on loan from Bristol City.
“We picked up a number of injuries during the week. We lost Paris Maghoma and George Marsh. We knew Walsall would play direct, so we felt that Ryley Towler would be a good screen in there. I felt he came out with credit. Jack Currie has been ill all week, he was running on empty, so that’s why we had to make the change.
“We didn’t quite get the impact (from the substitutes) that we needed. We wanted to get the ball wide and deliver, but our end product in those moments wasn’t good enough.”
Finally, the gaffer looked ahead to next weekend, with a highly anticipated derby against Sutton United approaching.
Johnnie is under no illusions as to the importance of this game and he will be demanding a response from his players.
“If you can’t get up for a derby – in front of a full house - of that nature, you’re in the wrong game,” he said. “It’s my job to get them up for it. I’ll be doing everything I can to make sure they’re ready. It’s got to come from within. I never needed a manager to motivate me.”
PICS: Steve Bailey (Pro Sports Images)