Cheltenham ‘not good enough’ in defeat at Crawley, admits Michael Duff

Posted Saturday, April 17, 2021 by PA

Cheltenham boss Michael Duff criticised his side’s performance after a late goal by substitute Jordan Maguire-Drew gave Crawley a 1-0 victory at the Broadfield Stadium.

Duff admitted that top-of-the-table Robins were “not good enough” as they went down to their first defeat in four games to remain a point ahead of second-placed Cambridge.

Maguire-Drew settled the issue nine minutes after replacing James Tilley by firing a well-placed shot in off the post after a pass by Tom Nichols.

Duff felt the display was well below par and said: “It was a fair result probably -we were not great today.

“We had a good chance at the end, but we didn’t look like us and were wide open at times.

“We didn’t fight, didn’t win the ball and I’m frustrated.”

Duff rejected any suggestion that his men are feeling the pressure and added: “I think we’ve taken 19 points from 10 games, so if that is feeling the pressure I’ll take that in the next five games.

“But we probably won’t be top after the weekend and we have to recognise that we were not good enough today.”

Crawley head coach John Yems had urged his side not to “lay down” in their final five games, and he was delighted with the way they responded after making it two wins in the space of four days.

The Reds followed up their 2-0 success at Bradford with another hard-working display, and Yems said: “We won’t give up on anything.

“I’ve always said I want to see work rate and consistency and we’ll see where it takes us.

“We could have scored another four or five on another day and every player stuck at it.”

Yems stated at the beginning of the season that ensuring survival for next term would be no mean achievement, but they are currently three points off the play-offs.

He added: “We have some good players and good characters and they are not fair-weather players. It is a pity the fans are not here.

“We will keep on playing in our last four games and see where it takes us.

“A lot of people want to see Crawley do well – you’ll get a good honest performance”