Ryan left Lowe as Shakers on edge
BURY boss Ryan Lowe admitted the Shakers’ season was summed up by the late own goal at Walsall that virtually sealed their relegation fate.
Adam Thompson headed Luke Leahy’s 89th-minute cross into his own net to leave basement boys Bury 14 points off safety with only 15 to play for.
It was harsh on the Shakers, who had been the better team in this battle of out-of-form sides – the teams shared nine straight defeats going into this.
A crestfallen Lowe sighed: “That 100 per cent sums up our season. When the luck is not with you, it’s not with you and an 89thminute own goal is tough to take.
“But both boxes win you games. A lack of quality and a lack of decisionmaking has cost us as we have had enough chances to win that game 2-0 or 3-0.
“We had ten chances, five on target, but my biggest gripe is not putting the ball in the net. People say unlucky, it’s not unlucky for me.”
Lowe’s mood was at contrast with counterpart Dean Keates, who picked up his first win as Saddlers manager to move Walsall five points away from the bottom four.
Keates said: “For us, it’s about points. If we got a performance on top that would have been a bonus but the lads ground it out.
“I thought in the first half we were the better team but second half, if I’m honest, they probably had the better of it.
“From the day I walked through the door survival was always in our hands and it still is. And that’s all we want, we want to be able to control it.”
Thompson almost scored at the right end three minutes in, a glancing header from Callum Styles’ corner forcing a smart save from Walsall keeper Liam Roberts. But it was the Saddlers who fashioned the better firsthalf chances.
Justin Shaibu’s snapshot brought a good save from Bury keeper Joe Murphy on 41 minutes and, just before the break, Kieron Morris rolled agonisingly wide. Bury’s best spell came early in the second half and Ryan Cooney embarrassingly missed his kick from Zeli Ismail’s cross eight yards out.
An Ismail 18-yard rocket was superbly pushed aside by Roberts before Hanson glanced a header inches wide.
But Walsall finished the game as the stronger side and although Bury scrambled an Amadou Bakayoko header clear off the line, they were beaten minutes later as Thompson miscued a header straight into his own net.