After witnessing his side fall to a late 2-0 defeat away at Wigan Athletic, a dejected Tony Mowbray recapped the game which fell away from Rovers. The boss also discussed his ever-growing injury list and the challenge of dealing with a ‘growing’ squad.
“We have to deal with the reality of today’s defeat. It’s disappointing, of course, because we sensed that an opportunity was available for us today, to pick up points and give ourselves a platform to build on, even though we were away, but it wasn’t to be. It wasn’t a game full of clear-cut chances, but we have to take the ones that fall to us over the course of 90 minutes. We created some half-chances but as I’ve said before, we’ve been on a journey with Wigan Athletic over the past three or so years, yet it was a frustrating one to lose because we were in such good control of the game.
“The first-half was a bit ‘end-to-end’, but I thought we controlled the game better in the second-half. We were on top for most of the second period, yet if you create the half-chances, you have to take them. The ball kept flashing across their six-yard box, and we couldn’t tuck it home. We had a chance where we’d got the ball at the back stick and then (Sam) Gallagher headered it over, so they all accumulate into chances you have to take. If they do, we’ll have probably left here with a 1-0 win, but it’s all fine margins.
“The first goal we conceded was really disappointing because we were messing about with it, but that’s football, ultimately. It was a tight game against a very organised side in Wigan. I think this was their fifth or sixth game in a row without conceding and they’ve carried on their form from before the lockdown and they’re sat towards the top of the form table, I believe, so they’ve shown they’re a good side. They’re a good team who have got good players, but it’s just frustrating from our perspective that we’ve lost a game that I never thought we’d lose.
“They weren’t creating a heap of chances, or opening us up with every pass they made, which makes things more annoying. We’d just brought Danny (Graham) on, so I can’t understand why we were playing around with it at the back, rather than playing off the front to, who I believe, is probably the best centre-forward in the league at using his body to hold off defenders and bringing the ball down. It was a strange decision from our players to play in our own six-yard box and invite a bit of pressure, but never mind, they’re a group who are learning. They have to learn as a group. I’m not really interested in people ‘learning on the job’, but we are a team who are trying to grow, and we have to accept, I suppose, that players are going to make poor decisions and mistakes. It’s just frustrating that we have to talk about it so soon after the game, but hopefully the team grow and learn from the mistakes they make.
“The games come thick and fast now. We’re back in training tomorrow, so we’ll go through this game and put it to bed before moving onto Barnsley. It’s probably good that we’re playing so many games in such a short space of time. Obviously, everybody’s squad and fitness levels will be tested, so we’ll see who’s available to us tomorrow after checking them for injuries, before beginning our preparations for Tuesday.
“I don’t want to ask the medical department about injuries, because that’s the last thing I need to talk about at the moment. We’ll find out how things are tomorrow, and we’ll be able to narrow down who’s available for Tuesday. Corry (Evans) and Joe (Rankin-Costello) were both injured, hence their omission from today’s squad. Joe’s feeling his hamstring. He’s a young boy who’s been asked to up his performance levels dramatically from what he’s usually dealing with at under-23s level, so we’ll have to see how he feels in due course. Corry fractured his big toe in last week’s game and we only realised after full-time. It was too swollen and sore for today and whether it settles down between now and Tuesday, remains to be seen, because he couldn’t even get his boot on for this game. It’s a bit of bad luck for him especially after what he’s been through and his great performance last week, but we have to deal with it.
“What this injury does create, is an opportunity for others to come in. Although we’re sad for Corry, who is an international footballer with great qualities, who, on his day can be brilliant for us, it might give someone else a chance to impress. We might end up with a few absentees over the course of the next few weeks, so we just have to deal with any injuries when they appear, yet it’s part and parcel of the game. You can’t just stand in-front of cameras and journalists and moan about the injuries in your squad, you just have to get on with it, that’s why you have a squad of players.”
