New Plymouth boss Steven Schumacher pleased to get first win against Charlton

Posted Sunday, December 19, 2021 by PA

New Plymouth boss Steven Schumacher expressed his delight after fifth-placed Argyle ended a run of five League One games without a win by beating Charlton 1-0 at Home Park.

Schumacher’s first home match in charge, since taking over three games ago from Ryan Lowe, ended in a win thanks to striker Kieran Agard’s superb measured finish at the end of the first half.

Schumacher said: “I am really pleased that we have got three points on the board.

“It’s been a tough run we have been on. We feel we have come up against some really good sides, fought, competed in all the games in the run we have had.

“All the players have stuck together. We haven’t given in and today I felt they got their just rewards.

“The character of these lads we brought in during the summer, we knew they were all good lads and they have shown us all season what they are all about.

“When you are on a great run of 16 unbeaten it’s easy to stick together.

“When you haven’t won in five it’s not so easy but today I thought they showed what they are all about.

“We didn’t play great in the first half and were probably lucky to go in 1-0 ahead at half-time.

“Second half we could have scored another goal to make it a little bit more relaxing for everyone.

“Credit to the players, they can enjoy tonight now.

“It was massive to end that run and get the win because we haven’t been playing badly.”

Charlton boss Johnnie Jackson, in his first game as permanent manager, said: “It was a disappointing day and a disappointing result. I don’t think that was our best performance today. We were a little bit flat and I don’t think we did enough to get anything out of the game.

“Losing three lads late on was not ideal, but it was an opportunity for other people and they will have to grab those opportunities. We didn’t do enough as a team to get anything out of the game, didn’t test their keeper enough and we were poor in the final third.

“I didn’t think there was anything in the game in the first half. There was a period during the first half where we were on top and missed a couple of chances and that was a time when we could have stamped our authority on the game and should have scored in that period. But we didn’t and let them off the hook a little bit.

“They played the conditions well in the second half, they used the wind to their advantage which is what we didn’t do well enough in the first half and we found it difficult to get balls up to Jayden (Stockley).

“When we did go forward, the crossing and decision-making wasn’t our usual level. We didn’t do enough in that second half.”