Elgin City manager Allan Hale assesses his team’s 2-2 draw with runaway SPFL League 2 leaders Stenhousemuir at Borough Briggs.
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00:00 Yeah, it kind of feels like a defeat in many ways because I thought our performance, especially
00:04 first half, was excellent. I thought we played a lot of good football at times. Defensively,
00:09 I thought we were resolute. We created goal-scoring opportunities and it's probably not having
00:15 that conviction in the final third. We missed two really good chances right before half-time.
00:20 Kees won especially. 1v1, those are the chances, especially when you play against teams at
00:26 the top of the league that you've really got to take advantage of. Scoring, getting yourself
00:30 a two-goal cushion just before half-time, that's a really big question. A senile smear
00:35 and one that they've got to come out and try and respond to. Unfortunately, we never took
00:39 the chances and I don't think we started the second half well. I'm not making excuses,
00:45 but I do think the schedule that the players have had recently with the volume of games
00:49 and the difficult nature of those games maybe played its toll. We're just a little bit sluggish
00:55 coming out. I thought we started to sit in as opposed to engaging them in the right areas
00:59 and gave away a really poor goal. It took us a wee bit to respond again from that, but
01:06 then we finished the game strong. I think a point is probably the right result and the
01:12 right outcome of the game. But from my point of view, there's so much to be pleased about
01:16 and we've just got to continue it now with the 11 games that we've got left.
01:22 That disappointment that you touched on with a 2-2 draw against runaway leaders, can it
01:25 tell us a lot about just how far the team's progressed?
01:27 Yes, and it's good again to see the reaction of the dressing room. Really angry and disappointed
01:32 dressing room in there because they feel within themselves it was maybe a missed opportunity.
01:37 When you're on top against the top teams and you get that opportunity, you've got to punish
01:41 and you've got to take advantage of them. We've not done it today, but again, so much
01:45 to be pleased about with the performance. We played a lot of good stuff at times and
01:50 created opportunities again. Just the second half, we probably wanted to create a little
01:53 bit more, try and be in the front foot. But the way that we're asking them to play takes
01:58 a lot of energy and it's quite sapping out the players. As I said, with the schedule
02:03 that we've had, we've had to go quite light in training this week, just based on the fatigue
02:07 of the players and that sort of stuff. But we've displayed plenty of energy again today
02:12 and put in a strong performance. Just frustrating that we maybe couldn't have taken another
02:18 couple of points out of it. We spoke about that at half-time actually. The reaction to
02:22 go 1-0 behind was really positive and that's exactly what I want to see out of the teams.
02:26 There's a long way to go and I think in weeks gone by that certainly would have affected
02:30 us, especially because at that time we conceded we were on top of the game. We were the team
02:35 that was creating the chances and I think that was actually the first chance of the
02:39 game. Again, we just switch off, they play the short corner, we're too slow to get a
02:44 second man out. Then the boys put a good delivery in. But we responded really well, which was
02:50 really pleasing to get the penalty through a period of pressure that we had in the game.
02:55 Then Brian scored an excellent goal, Lizzie, to put us 2-1 ahead. As I said, we had two
03:00 really good opportunities to then add a third and we've not done it and we've been punished
03:05 for it ultimately with a point in the end. We've probably been reluctant to change too
03:08 much because the performance levels have been really consistent. I don't want to just continually
03:14 chop and change the team. I want to have players that have got the jersey and then the other
03:18 players on the bench are fighting their way in to go and get that. I think it's just with
03:24 the volume of games, it's just felt a tweak in its hamstring. But Connell came in and
03:28 done really well. Again, we'll get the players rested up. We've got another two tough away
03:33 games coming up with Peterhead and Clyde. We'll just get them rested up and then prepare
03:39 on Thursday for Peterhead again.
03:41 It's getting very competitive in that bottom half of League 2, as I'm sure you would have
03:45 expected. Everyone's fighting for their lives down there.
03:47 Yes, and look, our situation has not changed at all. I don't really care what the results
03:52 are in the league, if I'm being brutally honest. I think for me, it's about us taking care
03:55 of ourselves and focusing on our own performance levels. If we get that right, then we'll pick
04:00 up points. As long as we take care of what we're in control of, which is trying to win
04:05 games of football, then what happens with the league table will really take care of
04:09 itself. I don't really want to focus on this team's picked up that many points and blah,
04:14 blah, blah. That's not really for us to focus on. We knew what our objective was when we
04:19 came in. That's not changed. We know we're still in the fight, arguably at both ends,
04:24 which is the tight nature of the league. But as I said, we've just got to keep focusing
04:28 on ourselves and doing the right things. Our form's been good and we should be taking encouragement
04:33 from that.
04:34 And that good form and the positives you've taken today, you'll take them into what will
04:37 be a tough game at Peterhead next week.
04:39 Yes, but what we're finding is every game is really tough in this league and it doesn't
04:43 matter who the opposition are. It's really tough and different teams ask different questions
04:48 and we've got to make sure that we prepare the players for what those questions will
04:51 be. We know Peterhead's got a lot of quality. They've got a healthy budget, which has allowed
04:58 them to recruit players with experience and quality. So we'll be prepared and we'll be
05:04 ready. As I said, it's just the next game. It's the next game now. So today's over. We'll
05:10 get the players rested up, as I said, and we just need to focus on the next one. Then
05:14 after next weekend, it'll be the next one after that. So a lot of games to come and
05:19 a lot of twists and turns, I'm sure.