Stockport Express

We gave it our all insists skipper

- SAM BYRNE

COUNTY captain Liam Hogan believes his side gave “absolutely everything” in the play-off semi-final against Hartlepool and echoed Simon Rusk’s assertion that County can go all the way in the 2021/22 campaign.

“The players and staff gave everything,” said the former Salford City skipper. “It’s massively disappoint­ing, because the effort we’ve put in all season comes down to one game. We’ve fallen short, but we want to be that one team to go all the way next season.

“We’re really hurting. We’ve got to go through the pain of today, but we know we’ve got the structure here to succeed, we’ve got a big, talented group of lads, with real leaders in there. We’ve got a lot to look forward to and a lot to be optimistic about.”

On the tight game, he said: “That’s the fine margins of the league and the play-off system – it’s tough to take. I thought we started the game really well and looked the likely side, but that’s just it in a shoot-out, the one game, anything can happen. We’ve had a couple of really good chances, they didn’t have too much. I always felt it was going to be a tight game and just hoped we could be on the right end of the scoreline but it wasn’t meant to be.”

1. Netherland­s city that is

home to FC Twente (8) 7. ..... Stadium, Rangers FC

home (5) 8 & 11D Scotland 1998 World

Cup finals captain (5,6) 9. Jonas ...... , Sweden defender with 244 appearance­s for West Bromwich Albion from 2008-17 (6) 10. Sandy .... , golfer who won The Open Championsh­ip in 1985 and the US Masters in 1988 (4) 12 & 14A 1992 and 1996 Olympic women’s 100m gold medallist for the United States (4,6) 14. See 12 Across 17. Abel ..... , Argentina striker who played in the 1990, 1994 and 1998 World Cup final tournament­s (5) 18. Edin ..... , Bosnia and Herzegovin­a striker signed by Roma from Manchester City in 2016 (5) 19. La Liga team that lost the 1987/88 and 2006/07 UEFA Cup Finals (8)

DOWN

1. Keith ..... , utility back whose 2008 Ireland Test debut was against Canada (5) 2. Dave ...... , former Chelsea, QPR and Manchester United manager who died in 2012 (6) 3. Graeme .... , Zimbabwebo­rn cricketer whose 1991 England Test debut was against West Indies at Leeds (4) 4. Tony ..... , Villa right winger in the 1994 League Cup Final (5) 5. Vénuste ......... , 1996 Olympic men’s 5,000m gold medallist (9) 6. Anders ......... , Sweden midfielder signed by Blackburn from Malmö in 1997 (9) 11. See 8 Across 13. Luis ..... , Argentina 1994 FIFA World Cup finals goalie (5) 15. Jason ..... , former Wimbledon, Charlton and Jamaica forward (5) 16. Fatuma .... , 1996 Olympic women’s marathon gold medallist (4)

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