Cambridge boss Mark Bonner bemoans letting lead slip against Wigan

Posted Wednesday, November 24, 2021 by PA

Mark Bonner’s frustration was clear after Cambridge let a two-goal lead slip against Wigan.

The U’s had looked set to claim a stunning win, with Joe Ironside netting the opening goal and setting up the second for Adam May.

But Wigan hit back with two goals in the final six minutes to draw 2-2, and preserve their strong form which has seen them stay unbeaten away in Sky Bet League One since the opening day.

“We’re kicking ourselves,” Bonner rued. “We should have won the game, it was ours. We had complete control of it. From our side, we’re really frustrated with the two goals we’ve conceded because they’re preventable moments.

“We had to work incredibly hard against another top side, put ourselves in a brilliant position. We’re so close to being a really good team, so close, but we have to turn those games into taking the maximum (points) from them.

“That was a game we should win, and we’re disappointed that we’ve drawn a game against a top team who will probably get promoted or be right up there at the end. It shows the progress that we’re making.

“I’m glad for the boys because of how hard they’re working and how hard they’ve worked to get themselves in the position that they’ve got firstly, but also we have to kick ourselves really because it was our game.

“We’re playing more games than anyone with fewer players and they’re working their socks off. I thought there were so many good performances, such a gritty resilience about how we worked.”

Wigan boss Leam Richardson was content with a point, given that his side had to come from two goals behind.

“I think when you’re 2-0 down you’ve got to be happy with a point, with the character that they’ve shown,” he said afterwards.

“We controlled large parts of the game, we moved the ball well. We need probably to have a little bit more cutting edge in the final third and deal with two or three balls in the box, but you’ve got to respect each team you play.

“Many teams have come here and not got a result, so we’ll certainly take what we’ve got and move on.

“I’m always pleased when they’re trying to do the right things. The first question I always ask myself is can they give the shirt any more? I don’t think they could.

“Could they be better in certain areas? Of course they can. Can we improve in certain things? Of course we can.

“You’ve got to be consistent with those good habits. When we did move the ball properly in the right areas we caused them a threat, especially in the first half.”