Competition

Date

Saturday 26th March 2011

Horgan frustrated by lacklustre defence

“At whatever level of the game, you can’t give sides a two-goal start and expect to come back from it.” Supermarine joint player-boss Gary Horgan succinctly summed up a frustrating 2-0 home reverse to Cambridge City in the Southern Premier League on Saturday, saying Marine effectively devised their own downfall.

 

The South Marston club were made to pay for a sloppy first-half display, as Cambridge hotshot Craig Hammond found the net twice before the break to leave Horgan disappointed by a lacklustre 45 minutes of football from his side.

 

Horgan and co-manager Matt Robinson had identified Hammond and strike partner David Kolodynski as the major threats to their team pre-match, but a lack of discipline at the back allowed Hammond the opportunities he gleefully lapped up. “We let them score two very sloppy goals, we switched off and allowed them to score which was very disappointing,” said Horgan. “At half time we felt, for the first time since Matt and I have taken charge, that we didn’t get what we wanted from the lads. “We didn’t have that desire and application we have had for the rest of the season. “There were some words said at half time and in the second half we were much better, but we had already given ourselves a lot to do.”

Cambridge took the lead thanks to Hammond’s penalty kick on 16 minutes. City broke down the left, with James Krause linking well with Tony Burke whose cross was met by a stooping Neil Midgley, and the striker saw his header blocked by Danny Allen’s arm - Hammond sent James Rae the wrong way from the spot.

 

Marine tried to find their way back into the game, and Robinson saw his overhead kick saved by Zac Barrett, but it was the visitors who doubled their advantage. After Midgely saw his effort ruled out for offside, Hammond made the most of hesitation by the hosts at the back to slam home Joey Abbs’ cross from close range. After the break Marine established a foothold on proceedings without finding a way past Barrett, whilst Hammond had a strike discounted by the linesman’s flag. In the end the result left Horgan frustrated.

 

“We have had our chances but couldn’t find a way through and we probably deserved to get one goal,” he said. “If we had then who knows, we might have made it a bit interesting at the end, but really we should have been better in the first half.” Horgan and Robinson remain on the lookout for fresh faces to bolster the Marine squad, with the transfer deadline only days away.

 

At the moment no action is imminent, however, although the pair have received a boost from a handful of first-team players returning to the fray. “We will have Dave Bampton back soon, which is good news, and we were able to name Sam Morris on the bench on Saturday,” said Horgan. “Will Puddy is not too far away from recovering either, so that’s all good news. “We don’t have anything particular happening at the moment, but we will keep looking.”

(Click pictures to enlarge)

 

Match Report from a Cambridge perspective... Swindon Report