By Brian Bennett
It was a subdued Marc Ellison who delivered a frank and honest postmatch verdict after looking on and seeing his side crumble to a 4-1 defeat at the hands of promotion chasing and current NPL East Division league leaders Bradford Park Avenue on Saturday.
“It was really disappointing,” said the Woodhorn Lane boss, “Everything which we had done well on Tuesday night against Lincoln United was non-existent today – the willingness to run off the ball in behind people, get close to people, pick up first and seconds, bravery to want and to have the ball wasn’t there. We conceded poor goals again including from another corner where there was no marking and it was like watching two different teams from Tuesday night to this afternoon.”
He continued: “It was just a bit of belief to be honest – it just wasn’t there. I don’t know whether it was because we came to face a team who were at the top end of the table but there was just something which wasn’t right. I said at training on Thursday night and again at half time that it looked like a performance where the hardest thing after the win at Lincoln was to keep our feet on the ground and to think that we hadn’t cracked it – because they hadn’t – far from it. Some of them (the players) in the first half didn’t really offer anything which was disappointing because I asked us to kick on and get better and not just rest on one game (at Lincoln) because it doesn’t really mean anything. Yes Bradford Park Avenue are a good team. They get after you and put the ball in the right areas and they had obviously watched us as they set up to stop us playing – but you’ve got to find other ways to affect games of football. You’ve got to try and do something else – it’s cat and mouse situation isn’t it?”
He added: “The message to the players at half time was to have a little bit more about themselves. The team that I watched in the first half wasn’t the team I had seen on Tuesday night – from one to eleven there was only one change – Matty Alexander coming back in goal for Adrian Janusz. I don’t know what it was. Things which they’ve been doing really well including the passing or body shapes or decision making was just all wrong today.”
He went on: “We will probably train on Tuesday then we have games on Thursday and Saturday. It’s a quick turnaround so the squad will have to be used and it gives lads the chance to get the shirt. The players who have been in the team have done okay – performances have been average to okay but we haven’t been getting results. I just expected a little bit more from today. No-one from the outside looking in would have expected Ashington to pick up a result at Bradford – but I did and especially after Tuesday. I had watched them (Bradford) a couple of times and I thought we could give it a good go providing we applied ourselves properly but we huffed and puffed and didn’t really look like scoring. The players just weren’t at it – they were nowhere near the levels that they gave themselves earlier in the week which was disappointing.”