AFC boss reflects on missing out on UCL promotion

HINCKLEY AFC manager Courtney Belford said his team had ‘underachieved’ after an agonising 1-0 defeat to Belper in the UCL Division One play-off final on Saturday.

A record crowd of 811 saw AFC beaten by a solitary second-half goal at Kirkby Road and Belford reflected on missing out on promotion after a season full of highs.

He said: “They’ve bettered us over three games this season. Every player we’ve had registered has probably played against them over the season and we’ve not been able to beat them.

“But we fell short. For myself, we’ve underachieved. The squad we had, the players and resources, to not get over the line ultimately means we’ve failed. It’s difficult to pick yourself up and go again. You overthink a lot of things, you question yourself for everything.

“Ultimately the buck stops with me as the manager, and my staff. The players have to shoulder a little bit because we were nowhere near our best. It’s a big occasion, the pressure was on, and we didn’t do enough over the course of 90 minutes.”

He said his side didn’t deal with the occasion well enough, adding: “We tend to start games well and stamp our authority but we didn’t do that. We played misplaced passes, made the wrong decisions, people didn’t get into shape.

“It was a big occasion, a big crowd who we thank for all coming out. It was unbelievable to play in front of that crowd. But with that it brings pressure, and that got to us.

“We didn’t create enough for the two forwards. Our only chance came in the 92nd minute and you’re going to snatch at things that late on.

“We didn’t create enough or play the way we want to play. We allowed them to dictate the game. They slowed it down, they had a gameplan and it worked.”