Albion crushed as good first half goes to waste
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MARTIN Paterson said Burton Albion paid a heavy price for not taking more of their chances in a strong first half against play-off chasing Barnsley.
The Brewers went in 1-0 up at half-time – it might have been more – but were crushed by a 15-minute second half spell in which Barnsley scored three times to secure a 3-1 win which keeps the Brewers deep in trouble at the wrong end of League One.
“The first half was really good and we should have been two or three to the good but we missed opportunities,” said the Burton manager.
“We got the goal we had been working hard for and went in 1-0 up at half-time against an excellent Barnsley team at this level but we had let them off the hook, scoring only one goal.
“It was still a good platform but then you saw what happened, it was a capitulation.
“They changed shape and brought two players on who are top-end at this level.
“I told the players at half-time that there would be a storm coming because I know Neill (Collins, Barnsley manager), I knew he would be aggressive.
“They punished us. Their quality killed us and we didn’t find a strategy to defend for that period of time.
“And then I am looking at my group of players and I am trying to get them to continue to play, continue to do the right things, but we start coming off script.”
Paterson’s frustration is clearly growing as his team show for spells that they can compete with the best in the division but, in what is now a nine-game winless run, cannot keep it going.
“It’s really difficult when there is a trend like that but you saw the first half performance and you couldn’t say we shouldn’t have been ahead,” he said.
“So, the performance levels are there in moments but it’s just not long enough, it’s not a complete performance.
“You keep looking at that first half and think, that has to be the full game, we have to keep believing in doing the right things.”
It was also tough for Paterson at the end as he had to endure supporters chanting “you don’t know what you’re doing” as he went to applaud them.
“I believe I’m doing the right things, I keep working hard and I’ll keep giving everything for the cause,” he said.
“And I’ll always go and applaud the fans.
“People can say what they want and you can never take that right away from a supporter.
“They want to come and watch us win and we’re not winning.
“I get a lot of flak for performances and results and I’ll take it on the chin but the players have got to step up, too, and give more for the cause, because there’s too many times that we perform well and don’t get the job done.”