After Rovers somehow managed to turn victory into a defeat, inside the final seven minutes of their home clash with Watford, Jon Dahl Tomasson was left bemused and frustrated as he spoke to RoversTV, after his side were disallowed a goal, before effectively handing three points to the Hornets.
“I thought the fans were brilliant today and it was great to see so many fans come out to support the team. I’m, of course, incredibly disappointed to lose this game, as are the players and fans. I don’t understand how we lost, today. We dominated a very good side for more than 70 minutes, playing some excellent football and creating a lot of chances. The only think we can probably complain about is that we didn’t take one of the chances we created. If we take one of those chances, we win the game. The big talking point will be, of course, the disallowed goal. Our second goal in the 70th or 75th minute is a big blow. The Watford goalkeeper (Ben Hamer) never had control of the ball; he dropped it. I think that’s a big moment, but I think the players played an excellent game. We’re disappointed for our fans that we couldn’t give them three points, because they were amazing.
“I’ve seen it back, but goalkeeper dropped the ball. He didn’t have it in his hands. Normally, that’s not a foul. Normally, a goalkeeper needs to catch the ball and hold it tight, but that was not the case, he dropped it immediately. It’s an extremely disappointing decision, but on the other hand, my players were excellent and played a great game. I think our fans enjoyed it, even though we lost because we saw the reaction and the applause at full-time, which means we’ve done something right as a team.
“We all know that we have a great academy and the staff there are all working hard to develop the future of Rovers. We had another young bench, today, as well but at the end of the day, games aren’t only decided by what happens in the two boxes – are you attacking and defending well enough? – it’s also decided by fatigue. It’s also important to be able to bring energetic players on who can replace the tired legs. All the players are great players, they’re doing a great job and showing a clear identity in their play. I don’t think we can complain because our players have been performing for many weeks, including today. We are in the relegation zone, regarding our budget, so the need to use academy players is normal because you cannot spend a lot. We know this is a difficult time for the club.
“We played some excellent side and dominated Watford, who have a lot of quality, international players and to dominate in the manner that we did, today, was very good. After the game, you’re disappointed because you wanted to win the game, but when you look at it in hindsight, you focus on the facts. The facts of tonight are that the players have done a great job, however, we should have done much better with the two goals we’ve conceded.
“Jake (Garrett) was good tonight. He’s been patient, working hard and improving with the concrete elements that I want from him. He has improved immensely this season. This is what we’ve been trying to do as staff and as a club, as that’s what the club want. He’s been very close to starting for a while and sometimes he’s probably deserved it and I’ve left him out. He’s been patient but he knows that the team comes first, even thought we’ve had a lot of puzzles to get the players in the right positions with the injuries, but I thought he was great today.
“Niall (Ennis) worked extremely hard, today, which I thought was a great positive and I took him off to manage him; he was not injured. I was very quick to bring Dom (Hyam) back into the starting line-up. I was hoping he could play 90 minutes, but after a while he felt he couldn’t play any longer and needed to come off. We can’t take the risk with Dom, because we know how important he is and the experience that he has, so hopefully he’ll be ready for Huddersfield Town on Boxing Day; if not he’ll be ready for Hull City.
“Because I haven’t been able to rotate, a couple of players have played more minutes that they probably should have, which is why I gave Harry (Pickering) a rest, because that would have increased his chances of getting injured. It was a massive risk. You could take the risk if you’re playing a final or you have enough left-backs in the building, but when you don’t have it, you can’t.
“I’m not sure yet, on whether Dom, Harry and Sammie (Szmodics) will be available for Huddersfield, but I’m sure they’ll be involved away at Hull City on the 29th.
“Every game is tough in this league. We know that it’s possible to win one game and then lose the next. That’s why it’s disappointing to lose against a good team like Watford, after dominating the game. It’s a great league, so you need to prepare for every possibility and every opponent.”
