Solihull Moors manager Liam McDonald has admitted his disappointment at his side’s performance in their 1-0 defeat at home to Wrexham on Saturday but feels his players are more than capable of bouncing back in Tuesday night’s fixture at home to Torquay United.
The Moors boss felt his side struggled against the Dragons and lacked the same level of energy he has seen from his players in recent weeks.
‘Performance wise, we struggled,’ McDonald told the club’s official website.
‘There was no energy and we lacked a lot on Saturday. It was disappointing because we have worked so hard over the last month.
‘Our work rate has always been good but last weekend was maybe a step too far for us and we didn’t play very well.
‘It’s hard to put a finger on the performance; perhaps it`s the games coming up so quickly, but it`s the same for every team. I’m very disappointed.’
McDonald felt his players lacked fight until they went down to 10 men, due to Jack Byrne’s red card. The 32-year-old also made comment about the referee’s performance in the game.
‘We didn’t deserve to win but on a different day we would have taken the game to them more,’ the former Hednesford Town boss added.
‘I’ve said to the lads that I felt we let ourselves down with the manner in which we lost and not putting up much of a fight until we went down to ten men.
‘I’m not one for moaning at referees but sometimes it seems they’re watching a different game to everyone else. You see it in the Premier League as well.
‘He has decided to give them a penalty and a sending off, which the lads are disputing. With the angle the ref was at, it is difficult to say it was deliberate handball. Sometimes you get them, sometimes you don’t.’
Solihull Moors have an opportunity to swiftly bounce back from Saturday’s defeat as they take on Torquay United at the Automated Technology Group Stadium on Tuesday night and Liam McDonald believes his side can put the Wrexham performance behind them and bounce back.
‘It was an unusual performance from us but we will bounce back Tuesday (against Torquay).
‘We do not take anything for granted – we have been on a good run and we will dust ourselves down. It is a dose of reality. We are a good group but we need to keep our feet on the ground and make sure we go out and work the opposition – we need to do that just to get a point because of the standard of the National League.
‘We are a young group and sometimes we are going to have off days but it’s about limiting them. We need to go six or seven games without having an off day. We lacked that bit of spark against Wrexham all over.’
The Moors boss is very aware of Torquay’s strengths ahead of the clash, especially after experiencing a tough 3-0 defeat to Gulls in November.
He also admitted changes could made to the team for the fixture but has confidence that whoever he puts out will put in a strong performance.
‘We are looking forward to putting in a better performance against Torquay. There will be a few changes because of the intensity of the league and how quickly the games come.
‘We need to make sure the lads are capable of playing with the same energy, as the pitches are heavier and it takes a bit more out of us. I am sure that whoever goes out there on Tuesday will put in a good performance.
‘We went to Torquay in my second game in charge and they beat us 3-0 – they are a good side? big and strong. They want to stay in the league as just much as we do and we need to show a bit more fight than we did against Wrexham.
‘I said to the lads that I cannot question their work rate but we need to battle harder to go and win. We will bounce back.’
Will you be at the ATG Stadium on Tuesday? Will the Moors beat the Gulls? Let us know your predictions in the comments section below!
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