Filipe Morais hoping Crawley appoint new manager ASAP after Oldham loss
Posted Sunday, September 02, 2018 by PA
Filipe Morais confirmed he does not want to be Crawley’s full-time manager after the Reds suffered late heartbreak in a 2-1 defeat at Oldham.
Morais was placed in temporary charge, alongside fellow player Jimmy Smith, following Harry Kewell’s move to League Two rivals Notts County.
Both played the full match at Boundary Park, but they made a nightmare start as Oldham’s Gevaro Nepomuceno converted Rob Hunt’s cross after eight minutes.
Crawley levelled when Dannie Bulman pounced on Ollie Palmer’s deflected assist in the 22nd minute.
They should have gone in front, but Palmer’s penalty was saved by Oldham goalkeeper Daniel Iversen after Ashley Nathaniel-George was tripped by Sam Graham.
The home side grabbed victory a minute from time, Sam Surridge credited with the goal after challenging Crawley defender Mark Connolly for a far-post cross.
Morais said: “It’s difficult trying to play and manage at the same time. There’s no shying away from that.
“It isn’t easy making decisions when you’re on the pitch and doing things in the heat of the moment. The easier part is working with players during the week.
“We want a manager as soon as possible. I’m a player and, although I’m definitely interested in coaching further down the line, there are a lot of playing years ahead of me.
“If the owners want us to keep helping out, then of course we’ll do that. We’ll do whatever is best for the club.
“You never want to lose as either a player or a manager, so this is a hard result to take.
“It was a tough ask because we didn’t have long to get the team ready, but our shape was good and we implemented our game plan. The second goal was really tough on the players.”
Oldham are unbeaten in five league games and manager Frankie Bunn said: “The main thing is to keep on building.
“It has been a hard month and we’ve played in fits and starts, but it’s pleasing that we are getting results.
“The players have made a good start to the season and it has been a squad effort, but nobody is shouting from the rooftops.
“We are looking to improve week by week, month by month, and we know the job is going to take time.
“We might have a dip at some point, so it will be about how we recover. We know we aren’t the finished article.
“The jubilation of scoring a late winner is obviously fantastic and we feel like the fans are really behind us.
“We need to move the ball a bit quicker at times and maybe take fewer touches, but it’s good to have an unbeaten run.
“We’ve got competition for places and it’s all about picking up points.”
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