We have to have the courage to play at 0-0

Last updated : 18 February 2007 By Tony Scholes
It was obvious that home boss Mick McCarthy would have been happier with his team's first half performance whereas opposite Steve Cotterill would have got more satisfaction from our second half showing, and that's just how it was.

"We deserved our win, based on the first half performance," McCarthy said after seeing his side move above Colchester into eighth place in the table. "We weren't as good in the second half as we have been recently, but the damage had already been done.

"I told the lads that games are often won on a couple of bits of inspiration and ninety minutes of perspiration, and that's how it was. Stephen Ward's goal was a touch of class, a real goal scorer's goal, and Michael Kightly was delighted with his header. He's had the yellow jersey all week because he's been awful in training, but he did the business today."

McCarthy sees his side in with a chance of going up and added: "This group of players have given the club an opportunity to be promoted and no one expected that at the start of the season."

Promotion and the play offs is now something way beyond the Clarets, we'd probably have to win virtually all our remaining games to make the top six, but manager Steve Cotterill saw some light at the end of the tunnel in yesterday's display, but again he pointed to the goals we gave away.

"They were two soft goals we gave away, but we did enough in the second half to earn a draw. You normally get a feeling from the away fans and they clapped us at the end, which was pleasing for both me and the players. That was a decent gauge because Wolves were hanging on at the end.

"If we had defended better in the first half we would have won the game 1-0 and it has probably been the story of our season a little bit that we have leaked too many goals. It doesn't matter how hard you work at that during the week, it is Saturday that counts and any mistake at the moment is costly.

"We've had some good performances, and some disappointing individual performances, and we just need to get back to being a seven out of ten team every week, that in turn will mean we go and get more results.

"I think we were better in the second half than we have been in recent weeks, but you have to play for ninety minutes and there is no point in us just putting in a good second half performance. Sometimes it is easy to play when you are 1-0 down, but we have to make sure we have the courage to play when it's 0-0.

"At this moment we haven't scored enough goals and we haven't kept many clean sheets and that is not necessarily a recipe for winning and being further up the table. We have just got to get through this period and get that win because that's what we need at the moment.

"A lot of these games we have prepared for have been away from home, and they have been tough games. We need to probably get that home win at the moment to give us that belief that we can go and win away again."