Grecians boss reacts to Mansfield defeat
EXETER CITY manager Paul Tisdale insisted that he would not be giving up on the Sky Bet League 2 play-off places despite a disappointing defeat at the hands of Mansfield Town at St James Park on Tuesday evening."It was a very good game, but one that we've lost," Paul said. "At this point in the season, it's all about wins, so we're really frustrated to have missed out. I have to be careful not to look at it too harshly; we have three games to go, and it looks a more difficult task, but we're still in it. It was something that I spoke to the team about beforehand, that there was every chance that today would be a dull situation after the last three or four games. The opposition were highly organised, allowed us to have the ball and stopped us from getting into dangerous areas. We had to be disciplined in what we did; not to concede an early goal, and still have the capacity to defend when it came to the crucial moments.
"We had the benefit of the possession in the first half, but it was a disappointing first goal. Their second goal was something special, and it's hard to criticise anybody for that. We came back and responded really well, but then the ball landed nicely for them for their third goal. We didn't play badly; the first goal was a key goal for us, as I'd have been very happy coming in 0-0 at half-time, but the goal changed things for us.
"We have to believe we can do it. It's an increasingly difficult situation, but we just have to move on and get our mind very much focused on Bristol Rovers on Saturday."