Following Rovers’ fourth successive victory and second clean-sheet in three games, Jon Dahl Tomasson spoke highly of his young team who dispatched an in-form, but managerless, Hull City side, 1-0 at the MKM Stadium, as the hosts were denied a shot on target all game.
“We put in a great performance today. We all know how difficult away games are in the Championship, let alone win on the road. It’s an extremely tough task and we’ve now done it back-to-back which was a real positive. Today’s win was well deserved. We scored a great goal in the first-half and the flexibility of our tactical and formation changes today, was good. We have to give credit to the boys, but I’m a bit disappointed that we didn’t take more of the chances that we created in the first-half.
“Had we been a little bit better on the ball, then we would have led at half-time with a greater margin. I was disappointed at half-time that we weren’t ahead by more, because the game would have become tougher in the second-half. The second-half showed the boy’s togetherness and spirit. They’re fighting, both offensively and defensively for each metre. We brought in players off the bench, who worked hard for the team, which was important and great to see. It was a well deserved win, but it would have been better had we won by 2-0 or 3-0, as it should have been at half-time.
“Everybody contributed to today’s victory. As I’ve said many times, we need the whole squad. The collective team is the number one priority. The lads understand that (Blackburn) Rovers are the number one priority and that everyone needs to work hard for the club and the fans, which is what they’re doing.
“Hull City didn’t manage a single shot-on-target today, and I think we had six, which made it a very solid performance. We’re delighted with the clean-sheet. We’ve defended the box extremely well and have adapted to the change of formation quite quickly, both before the game when we changed to a four and in the second-half when we went back to a five. You need to be flexible in modern football. The era where you could remain in one formation for 90 minutes is over. The game has evolved into focussing on space and where you can hurt the opponent and where they can hurt us. I have to give great credit to the players and the fans who travelled. I enjoyed seeing all our fans come follow their team. I’ve said from the beginning that we have to create that ‘togetherness’ between the fans, the players, the staff and the club. We need to show the fans passion and that we’re working hard for Rovers, but they need to give us something back, which is, of course, patience and support for the team, which they’re great at.
“I don’t think we can say we’re ‘no longer inconsistent’, despite four wins in a row. We’re going to remain inconsistent, because we’re a young side who are ‘under construction’. We have to give them credit for getting the results, but we will remain inconsistent.”
The Head Coach was questioned about Tuesday’s upcoming fixture away at Coventry City, who are experiencing issues surrounding their home, the Coventry Building Society Arena, following the announcement that local Rugby Union side, Coventry Wasps, had entered administration, leaving doubts over where Coventry would play future home games, starting with Rovers’ visit.
“I feel sorrier for our fans than our team, because we can always travel and stay in a hotel, but our fans need to be very flexible and know in advance so they can plan their day. For them to only know by Monday, a day before the game, is not good. We don’t want it to be rescheduled. We love playing games and it’s all about enjoying our time on the pitch, but my first thought is with the supporters, who don’t know exactly where they’ll have to go.
“Sam’s (Szmodics) goal was brilliant. When you bring new players into the club, it will always take them time to settle. He has had some great performances and has scored an excellent goal, through an excellent finish after a fantastic pass through by young Adam Wharton. Sammie’s movement was great, and I think he should have scored more than just one! It was great to watch him today, but his and the team’s desire to defend and keep a clean-sheet, despite playing a match-winning role was great to see.”
