WAY: WE FAILED UNDER PRESSURE
AFTER gaining an early lead, Darren Way was hugely disappointed with the way his Yeovil side surrendered to Non-League Stockport.
“Everything was going according to plan, we were 1-0 up and the game plan was working and then it’s about keeping control. One or two players couldn’t handle the pressure,” Way said.
“There will be a lot of lessons learned by individuals. Those that I’m missing who are in the stands would probably have led by example. It’s important I can put a team together that can control a game for 90 minutes. One or two have dropped short. They didn’t look fitter, or stronger, or more confident than them.
“That’s what the FA Cup can do to you. They raised their game by an extra 20 or 30 per cent. They got men behind the ball and we weren’t clever enough to break that down.
“That can happen if you’re not at the top of your game. Individuals have to ask themselves for the future of the football club and the future of their careers, did they take responsibility in that performance? That’s all I ask for. I’ve not lost emotional control in the dressing room. I’ve been constructive because I feel we have to move forwards.”
Despite being two divisions below their hosts Stockport started the better of the two sides, but Yeovil still took the lead after eight minutes as Alex Fisher rose at the far post to head in.
The visitors didn’t let this affect them, though, and they equalised in spectacular style when Matty Warburton bent in a superb free-kick after 34 minutes.
Just four minutes later the away side were ahead as poor defending allowed Elliot Osborne to cross low for Nyal Bell to tap home a second.
Yeovil’s afternoon went from bad to worse in the 62nd minute when a mix up at the back between Nathan Baxter and Shaun Donnellan left them both on the floor, and allowed Frank Mulhern to walk in a goal just two minutes after coming on.
Ben Hinchliffe pushed a Tom James header onto the bar late on to ensure a memo- rable result for Stockport – much to the delight of manager Jim Gannon.
“For the club this is a great day because it shows we’re perhaps on the up and working our way back,” he said.
“More importantly for these players who are trying to establish themselves as full-time professionals or work their way back into the game, for them it’s a massive day. I said to them that this won’t be the highlight of their careers, this is just a taste of what can come if they work hard. “There’s great character in the team. We’ve got a young team, but they’ve responded to everything that has come onto them and come out on top.”