Livi v Accies
Gary Holt at a loss after shock defeat
Gary Holt has lamented the “naivety” and lack of aggression shown by his Livingston side after they slipped to a 2-1 defeat against Hamilton.
The Lions enjoyed a dream start at the Tony Macaroni Arena when a Shaun Want own-goal gave them the lead after 29 seconds – however that proved as good as it would get for the hosts.
Livi displayed unforgivable profligacy at one end, with Scott Pittman and Marvin Bartley among the prime culprits, and were uncharacteristically soft at the other.
They conceded from two set-pieces, with David Templeton scrambling home the leveller in the second half following a Reegan Mimnaugh corner.
Teenager Kyle Munro was then left woefully unmarked to head home a late winner.
Holt struggled to hide his frustration following a second league defeat at home – previously a fortress – already this term.
“If you don’t defend your box you don’t win games, it’s as simple as that,” fumed Holt.
“That’s at any age, and when you get to this level you get punished even more so.
“It was naive for us to think somebody else would clear the free kick.
“You go and clear it – you go and do your job.
“And if you don’t do it, you ain’t gonna play nest time.
“At the end of the day you have got to have the desire to put your head in where it hurts – and we have lost two soft goals.”
Moreover, Holt is adamant he foresaw the collapse during the interval – despite having a 1-0 lead – and warned the players to buck up their ideas or risk throwing away the points.
Instead, Hamilton were by far the better side in the second 45 and, barring Pittman striking the cross-bar, were the more potent attacking force.
“We spoke at half-time and I wasn’t happy with how we were getting about the game,” said Holt.
“We warned them the next goal would be the crucial one.
“You could see if Hamilton got it they would go on and win the game, I just felt it.”