Grecians boss reacts to last-gasp point
EXETER CITY manager Paul Tisdale acknowledged the influence of the Big Bank in roaring his side on to a last-gasp point at home to Bristol Rovers this afternoon.Jamie Reid struck deep into injury-time to salvage a draw after Stuart Sinclair looked to have earned Rovers all three points, but the City boss was waxing lyrical about the team effort, with influential performances across the park keeping City in it against a resurgent Rovers side earlier in the game.
"It was an absolutely brilliant game," Paul said. "I was almost rehearsing what I would say for the last five minutes, and without us scoring the goal, it probably would have been the same. It's the first time in a long time that I've thought that we really played as a team today - the whole atmosphere was fantastic, and the effort and energy were brilliant. We were up against it in the second half, given that the wind was getting stronger and stronger, but to get through it in the way we did was pleasing.
"I thought Rovers were fantastic, and I didn't realise the full extent of the wind - I was trying to get a message to Jordan (captain Moore-Taylor) to get him to change ends to take the wind into account. That first half definitely benefitted their game over ours. They will be very disappointed to have drawn that, even though we defended very well.
"It would have been a tragedy to lose that game because of the throw-in situation - clearly the referee and linesman made a mistake, and it would have been a travesty to lose after going through all that effort. Bristol Rovers may have deserved to win that game, but it would have been wrong to lost it that way. The referee signalled for our throw, and then somehow that changed and our players didn't know about it. That wouldn't have been fair.
"For us to come back and get the goal for me summed us up over the past few weeks - what a good team feel there is around the place. We were running out of midfielders towards the end, and finished with Alex Nicholls, Lee Holmes and Ryan Harley in the middle. If we'd lost the game, I would have been disappointed, but I'm proud that my players contended with those injuries.
"Jamie doesn't think a lot, he just acts - and that isn't meant to be demeaning to him. He would have been the one person that I'd have wanted it to come to in that situation, and he just committed to the volley where some might have taken a touch. It may not have been the sweetest volley, but I didn't care, I was jumping up and down. I'm so pleased for him.
"I've not seen the Big Bank like that for a long, long time - they've been building that for us, and they were absolutely brilliant. They were probably our man of the match."