Jon Dahl Tomasson was upbeat in the midst of disappointment, after Blackburn Rovers were beaten 3-2 by Sheffield United in the FA Cup Quarter Finals at Bramall Lane. The Head Coach spoke to RoversTV after the game, detailing how proud he was of his side, despite them being denied a dream trip to Wembley.
“We’re bitterly disappointed not to get a result, today. If you look at the performance, I think it deserved a better result because the lads did an excellent job. We remained in the lead until 80 minutes, but we probably should have scored a third goal to kill the game. We know that football can be a cruel game, but we’re disappointed for the fans. It’s amazing to have their backing here, almost 6,000 of them. When the boys look back to both cup campaigns, I think they can be proud. Today, we can be disappointed, which is normal. It was a terrible way to concede their third goal, which was a bit of a nightmare.
“I was expecting the game to be stopped when Tyler (Morton) went down holding his head. Imagine if someone had a very serious head injury and the referee didn’t stop the game? That could have put the player’s life at risk; it was a really bad decision from the referee (Tim Robinson). I haven’t spoken to any of the officials. I don’t think they would be proud of their decision, but we can’t change it now.
“It’s a key moment, because we’re effectively down to ten players and they shot from outside the box. Tyler would have most likely been in the position where their player (Tommy Doyle) found the space to shoot.
“We scored two excellent goals, today and created some brilliant chances. As I’ve said, the performance was one of high quality and it deserved a better result, but that’s football. Sometimes it can be tough, but we should be proud of how far we’ve gone in both cups. Now, we have nine games left in the league that we can focus on, look forward to and enjoy.
“A third goal for us would have killed the game. Sheffield United were a bit ‘off’ in that moment, but football is all about moments that can change games. We could have easily gone into extra-time and penalties today.
“The result is tough on the players and morale is a bit low in the dressing room, which is normal. Yet, tomorrow, the players will look back on the journey and be proud of their performances against Premier League teams and a team, in Sheffield United, who could be in the Premier League next season. They have been ‘giant-killers’ this season and the way they played today showed that. We cannot complain, at all, about the players’ performance today, or in any of the cup games we’ve had this season. The boys have done an excellent job.
“It was amazing and very special to see 6,000 Rovers fans come and support us, today. We have to give them a lot of credit, because they were giving us a lot of support and noise and helping the team push on in difficult moments. They will be disappointed, like we all are, but I believe we’re doing a good job together. It’s incredible to see them all stay after the game to applaud the players, who worked very hard today.”
