Cooper laments late defensive lapse which cost side a point at Rangers
Windsor FC manager Mark Cooper lamented another late defensive lapse as his side lost 2-1 at Abbey Rangers on Saturday, writes Ben Hart.
The Royalists are yet to keep a clean sheet this season, and Cooper has said they’re unlikely to make strides up the Combined Counties Premier Division North until they get players back from injury and a more settled back four.
On Saturday they look like they'd rescued a point when Danny Horscroft netted in the 85th minute to make it 1-1 at high-flying Rangers, however, they lost focus a couple of minutes later when Marcus Williams stole in to deliver
a late sucker-punch.
He said: “We cannot continue conceding two goals a game because against good sides you don’t get that many opportunities to score yourself.
“We have to start keeping clean sheets, until we do that it’s going to be difficult to get on a run.”
Windsor hit the bar twice in the first half but trailed at the break thanks to a Mohamed Diakete strike for the hosts. The result leaves Windsor in 10th and without a win in their last three games. However, Cooper believes that the defence will improve with the return of key players from injury.
He said: “We are hurting defensively. We’ve had two complete back fours wiped out twice. It’s been a constant battle. You can see from the number of goals we’ve conceded that it has really affected us.”
Cooper added: “The majority of performances have seen us show a real competitive edge. The squad is evolving, and I can’t fault the effort and endeavour they’re putting in to try and get points. The missing piece is the clean sheet. Once that’s in place we feel very confident we can compete well in the league.”
Cooper will be eyeing up a first league shut-out when Windsor travel to Wokingham and Emmbrook this weekend. The Satsumas sit fourth from bottom having won just two of their first 10 games.