Reds can emulate Stags party: Dools
ACCRINGTON Stanley boss John Doolan hopes the scenes of jubilation at Mansfield Town this week can inspire his players to achieve success of their own.
The Reds were looking to play the role of party poopers when they travelled to the One Call Stadium on Tuesday looking to deny the Stags the result they needed to secure promotion to League One.
However, the Stags won 2-1 courtesy of an own goal from Tommy Leigh and a Stephen Quinn stike. Leigh made up for his early blip with an 85th minute consolation for the Reds, but it did not halt the carnival atmosphere among the home supporters and players.
“It’s Mansfield’s night and it’s fantastic for them,” said Doolan.
“They have been trying for a number of years to get themselves up and promoted so well done to Nigel (Clough) and Andy (Garner) and all the playing staff. That’s what you want to aspire to and that’s where you want to get.
“We’ve done it before, so there’s no no stopping this group of young lads that’s coming through and this is what they want.
“We will move on and hopefully that can be us in 12 months.
“We came here to try to spoil the party and I think the lads did their best and showed that.
“We wanted to stay in the game, so we had a game plan to play in blocks of 15 or 20 minutes.
“That early goal kills you a little bit, but the lads showed resilience and character to get in at halftime to sort ourselves out.
“They never stopped and we pushed them right to the end.”
The 2-1 reverse at Mansfield followed a 4-0 thumping at in-form Doncaster Rovers on Saturday, the Yorkshiremen making it eight wins in a row as their bid for a play-off finish picks up pace.
After that game, Doolan said: “It sounds a bit mad but I asked the lads to start on the front foot and I thought we did for the first five or six minutes, but the first goal goes in and it just puts you on the back foot.
“We concede these early goals and you need a response. It was difficult.
“There was loads of effort. The lads did respond. It wasn’t for lack of effort and they just had a bit more quality and that was the deciding moments in the game.
“We’ll draw a line under this one and move on. We want to pick us as many points as well can in the remaining games.”
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