Vale Boss Martin Foyle On The Game

Last updated : 07 April 2007 By Thetashkentterror

Vale boss Martin Foyle
Valiants manager Martin Foyle spoke to BBC Radio Stoke on Saturday evening as he gave his opinion on his team's 2-0 defeat at home to the Blues, Foyle saying that it just was one of those days for his side :


" I knew it was going to be a tough afternoon, they are a decent outfit and I did predict that before, not the score though. We gave them a lifeline, that first goal again is so important in this league. We had three chances to clear it, they were snatched clearances, Joe (Anyon) brought off two good saves at the right time but they followed in with the rebound, so I was very disappointed with their first goal.

" Then after that in the second-half we started to pen them back a little bit, we created some half-chances, then they had a player sent off. We took gambles, we had three upfront, four upfront, one in the hole, then we went two for two at the back to try to get ourselves back in it. We created a lot of chances in that second-half but today, but unlike the previous weeks where we have scored a lot of goals, we couldn't get that ball in the net today.

" Sometimes it happens that way, strikers - sometimes they score sometimes they miss don't they, but I felt that when we missed two or three simple chances that today wasn't going to be our day. Then they broke, and well, that was a magnificent finish, it's just a shot that if it goes over the bar it goes over the bar, but it nestled right in the top corner. We just couldn't get that equaliser, I think that would have got them rocking and the crowd behind us. I'm disappointed with the result but we've got to look on to Swansea now, we can't look back.

" I thought we got caught on a few challenges, he (referee Eddie Ilderton) booked one on Robin (Hulbert) and then Robin was clean through and has been taken out again. That's why I didn't hand the teamsheet in, I think this referee is very inconsistent so I kept well out of the way today, but it didn't surprise me.

" He (Paul Harsley) was solid but I knew he was going to tire and we knew we were going to have a substitution problem after about sixty minutes and he did tire. Set-pieces were poor today, at the end of the day we tried to change it, we put two in there and one in behind so it was a bit of a mis-match day today. Give credit to the lads though, they kept running, they worked very, very hard but we just didn't have that final cross or finish in the final third. "



" We didn't stop working and if we had scored it would have been game on, and that was with 25 minutes still to go, we would have been well and truly in the match. They started throwing an extra defender on, an extra midfielder on, and they were going backwards and backwards because we were taking the gamble. On another day that could have ended up 1-1, but sometimes you throw that much caution to the wind you do get caught on the counter-attack. Like I said it was a "worldy" goal and you take your hat off to the lad.

" It was important to get Luke (Rodgers) on there, I thought he showed some good touches, I thought it was very congested up the front there. There were a lot of bodies in there, the back-four were right round tight and midfielders were dropping deep so there wasn't a lot of room for him to play today. He showed some good stuff at the right times though and I thought we were unlucky not to create.

" We had four out-and-out strikers there with Nathan (Lowndes) with ten minutes to go. People call it the cavalry charge or whatever, but I'm disappointed as I think we could have got something there. He (Akpo Sodje) said the close range chance came off his heel and just trickled wide from about three or four yards. When that didn't go in I honestly thought that today was not going to be our day.

" The lads are coming in tomorrow like I think most teams will do, we're coming in for 11am and we're travelling to Swansea at 1pm, it's a long journey down to Swansea so we've got to be prepared. They've got to come at us, I think they need the three points, I saw they drew at Bristol City today so we'll just have to wait and see who's fit and who's available.

" I don't know if Danny Sonner will be available for Monday, it's close, he said he was very sore today so 24 hours is not going to make a lot of difference. We'll just have to wait and seen, then Walshy (Michael Walsh) cramped up so that might need time for a little bit of recovery, like I said though, with professional players you've just got to get on with it. We can definitely go there and spoil the party, without question.

We're looking forward to it, then we've got a local derby the week after so it's not really a shutdown end of season is it at the moment. I looked at some of the results and if we could have got three points today then we would have been in a very healthy position. Being a top ten side at the end of the season is still the benchmark, although it's very hard to compete against the big sides, and I'm not just going to say that. If we can get in around that twelve to ten then I think we've done very well with what we've got. "