Head Coach Stephen Crainey spoke to the local press after his side were beaten 3-0 by Shrewsbury Town at Highbury Stadium in Sky Bet League One on Saturday.
Goals from Ryan Bowman, Josh Vela, and Daniel Udoh saw the Shrews take all three points back to Shropshire on Boxing Day after Crainey’s first full game in charge as Head Coach ends in defeat.
Here’s what he had to say:
On the game…
“I thought from the first whistle to the 90th minute we weren’t at it at all and it’s not been like us, so from our point of view I’m really disappointed in that sense. A lot of the younger players in the group, we want them to learn, become men quickly but the reality is it’s three points at stake.
“It's not through lack of effort, they always give me everything every day. I thought it was a really collective performance today, it was just an off game. It’s the first time since I’ve been in charge and I want it to be the last.”
On learning from the performance…
“The first half wasn’t great, we never got into the groove, at halftime we tried to reset but then it just carried on for the rest of the game which is disappointing. The lads are hurting, we want a reaction quick.
“I thought we were outfought, and we were bullied a little bit today so they can learn from it and take it forward but I was just disappointed with the whole game today. We were outfought in every department, and we need a big reaction soon.”
On his personal views…
“All the games in League One are difficult, we will go into our next few games with a view to winning, personally I’m delighted to be leading this club - there will be ups and downs this season but we have the ability to bounce back from a loss but it’s common knowledge between the boys that we want more ups than downs.
“Every club is in the same position where things change every week, taking out own our long-term injuries and COVID issues it’s disappointing when football games aren’t on, that’s not just us at Fleetwood Town it’s every club up and down the country.”