Pato: Stacked against us but we got there
MANAGER Martin Paterson did not excuse Burton Albion’s poor last-day performance against Fleetwood Town but says they stayed up in League One despite “everything going against them” in the last few months of the season.
The Brewers were beaten 3-0 by already-relegated Fleetwood and were spared relegation because the team who could have caught them, Cheltenham Town, lost 2-1 to Stevenage.
“We were awful. As a performance, I’m not happy,” said Paterson.
“I told the players at half-time. I ripped a strip off them. They froze, they struggled, they couldn’t hack it.
“I wanted to do it our way, I wanted to win. You saw the line-up, we went four at the back, we went really aggressive – but the players couldn’t do it.
“There were too many fatigued, too many who aren’t fit enough at the moment.
“We had started so poorly and we seized up when we went 1-0 down.
“We were miles away from what we were against Reading, look how good we were against Reading and how poor we were today.
“But we’re drawing a line under it because, over the course of the season, we have done enough to be a League One club.”
In suggesting that many things had gone against the Brewers, Paterson started by alluding to Peterborough United putting out a weakened team last Tuesday against Cheltenham who won 2-0 to take the relegation battle to the final day.
“What I will say, everything has gone against this group,” said Paterson.
“you look at Tuesday, when we hoped we wouldn’t have to go into the final day but then we saw what happened and I will say no more.
“People don’t know how hard it has been to get this team over the line, which was my remit from the chairman. I knew, coming in, that it was going to be tough.
“We couldn’t talk about it within the season but now we have to be honest – we bought young boys in on loan to give them a chance but knowing there would be inconsistency.
“We lost our number one striker, Bez Lubala, to Wycombe. We lost (loan signing) Jonathan Leko to an ACL injury within 20 seconds of him playing. Everything was stacked against this group.
“I had numerous calls from managers who are experienced who said, three or four weeks ago, it’s going to be tough, Martin, it doesn’t look like you’re going to be able to do this.
“Nigel Clough called me, which meant a lot. He wished me well and told me how hard he thought this job was. I was very thankful for the call and it goes to show what this club means to people.
“We’ve talked before about Burton Albion and what that means to us. It’s massive.
“There are clubs who have gone down who have double our budget.
“We couldn’t compete with clubs below us, who’ve been relegated, in the transfer market.
“I was pipped for my three main targets (at the end of the transfer window) by teams that have gone down.
“And yet they’ve done it, the group have done it, so I don’t want them to have a hangover from today.
“It was a terrible performance – but over the course of the season, we have got safe and it’s a massive achievement.
“I think the most important thing is that we understand how hard this has been for the group of players.
“We have had tough times but we have had big wins that have got the club over the line.
“The staff have been fantastic and the players have done all they could.”
Asked about planning for next season, Paterson added: “Anyone in this industry knows that you start that work a month ago and it’s already been put into process.
“For now I’m going to go and enjoy some time with my family, with my kids and relax for a day or two because this has taken a massive toll on me.
“I can say now how hard it has been because it doesn’t sound like an excuse; it’s just the honesty of it.”