Accy’s home comfort
SHELDAN KEAY
ACCRINGTON Stanley defender Mark Hughes insists his team need to take full advantage of having two home games in quick succession.
The Reds suffered a defeat on Saturday as they were beaten 2-1 at Crawley, with Stanley dropping to seventh place in the League Two table.
Up next for them is a home game against Stevenage this weekend, before following that up with another match at the Wham Stadium when they host Swindon on Tuesday.
Hughes is well aware of how important these next two fixtures are, and admits they need to try and take maximum points to try and get back in the automatic promotion places.
“We’ve got to regroup and be ready for two big home games next week. We’re a team who want to win every game that we play,” he told the club’s official website.
“Back-to-back home games on Saturday and Tuesday gives us a chance to make up ground and get back into the top three again, we just have to keep pushing and working hard together.
“It was a tough result to take against Crawley. Especially to go two down for the second week in succession – we can’t keep doing that.
“We created plenty of chances in the first half, but the first goal is always crucial in this league. They’ve scored the header and kicked on. I thought we had enough of the game to get something from it.”
Hughes admits he was unhappy with his side’s lack of defending for Crawley’s second goal, but is adamant that they will learn from the mistake.
“We’re disappointed at the back with the second goal. Their lad has been able to tap it in without much pressure or anybody marking him,” he said.
“We know there are areas of our game that we must brush up on but I think anyone who has watched that game will say it could have easily gone either way.
“Our goal was a strange one, it was like a bit of pinball, their defender has cleared it straight into his own man and it has looped in.
“I thought here we go again, we can do something like last week.
“In the end we were a bit disappointed with how we finished, we gave sloppy passes away and didn’t put them under the pressure we wanted to.”
‘Back-to-back home games gives us a chance to make up ground’