Thetford Town player-boss Matt Morton felt two red cards at Ipswich Wanderers were undeserved and had big impact on result
Thetford Town's Matt Morton described his side's 3-2 defeat at title rivals Ipswich Wanderers as 'very difficult to take' and felt their two red cards were 'not right' and had a big bearing on the outcome of the key clash.
Following a dramatic stoppage time brace from substitute Josh Folkes, when playing against nine men, the east Suffolk side find themselves ahead of long-time leaders Thetford by two points in the Thurlow Nunn League Premier Division with five matches to play.
It came after goals from Cameron King and George Diggens had put the Brecklanders into a 2-0 interval lead in front of a record league crowd of 501 at Humber Doucy Lane on Saturday.
But the comeback for the hosts got under way in 66th minute when player-manager Morton sliced Kris Roses' volley towards his own goal and substitute goalkeeper MacAuley Rodgers could not manage to keep it out.
Second yellow cards were shown to Elliot Smith and then Nathan Clarke within the last three minutes of regulation time before Thetford's plucky resistance to the incessant pressure eventually told in the 93rd and 97th minutes. And it ultimately hands Wanderers control of the title race and the sole automatic promotion spot.
"Crazy is a good word. It's hard to take. Obviously it's very fresh straight after the game," Morton said in his post-match interview to SuffolkNews at The Doucy.
"In the first half I thought we completely controlled it. We had a 2-0 lead and deserved at least that.
"They were getting very frustrated and it looked like there was only going to be one team that would go and get that next goal. And the third goal would have obviously killed it.
"Unfortunately for us I think a few of us got a little bit leggy. We definitely sat a little deeper in the second half than we did in the first with that two-goal cushion which wasn't the plan.
"But fair play to them, clearly the way they were playing, very direct leaving the three high, stopped us playing out from the back like we were in the first half.
"Naturally we were less attacking and I think that some of those attacking players were the ones with the heavy legs, and when that counter was on we just couldn't carry the ball from the half-way line like we were in the first half which made it difficult.
"I can't say too much about the things which happened towards the end because I'll probably get into trouble, but the fact we've ended with nine men for me is not right and it's obviously had a huge impact on the result.
"And Ipswich Wanderers are not a team that you want to be playing against with a two-man advantage.
"They've got Danny Cunningham who has a great left foot if you give him time and room.
"With two men less we couldn't press and stop that happening as much so we almost had to accept the ball coming into the box.
"And then they have an overload still of an extra man in that box every time.
"We defended well for 95 per cent of those but it takes its toll and when they keep coming and keep coming someone is eventually going to get free and that happened twice."
And ahead of hosting Long Melford on Saturday (3pm), off the back of consecutive defeats, he hopes that they can now play the part of the hunters as well as Wanderers have done.
"The first goal is a bit of a freak goal and definitely should have been dealt with better I think but we needed to respond to that and take the game back to them and that didn't happen," he said.
"And like I say, their two-man advantage took its toll and they're now the favourites. We have to accept that but we'll be doing what they've been doing all season and knocking on the door and keeping the pressure on.
"And they've got very difficult games to come, we both have, so we just lost to Mildenhall on Tuesday and Mildenhall have proved as inconsistent as they've been they've got very good players and they're very capable on the day. And They'll be ready next Saturday and that's not going to be an easy game, neither is Harleston on the last day of the season, neither is Norwich United.
"There are plenty of games that both teams still have to get through. There are 15 points each that both teams still have to play for, that means there's 15 points that can still be dropped, for both sides, not just for them but us.
"And we've just now got to focus on doing our bit and focus on doing our best to try and get 15 points from the remaining 15 and see what happens and if that's good enough.
"If that is, brilliant, because I feel we deserve it. But ultimately you'll pick up the title if you deserve to pick up the title and if Ipswich Wanderers end up picking up the title I'll hold my hands up and say fair play, congratulations."
With Smith and Clarke now facing suspensions, he said: "It's a double whammy as far as the red cards go. First of all it changed the game here today, a crucial game, and second of all it has an impact on those last five as Elliot will miss a game and Sharky will miss at least a game and they're two important players for us so there will be a knock-on effect.
"It's very difficult to take, again, I can't say too much on my opinion to those decisions but it's very difficult to take.
"Nathan's first one I was told was for totting up which is interesting because it was his first foul.
"Literally five minutes before he was complaining to the ref about being fouled multiple times when going for the ball in the air. So it was interesting logic.
"The second one he's got the ball which again is clear as day. The ball's changed direction. He's toed it away and not made any contact with the player but listen, these things happen.
"I'm sure over the course of the season there have been decisions that have gone our way, I can't remember too many of them but I'm sure there has been.
"We've now just got to pick ourselves up. We can't do anything about it, the result is the result. We are now two points off first place for the first time this season we are not winning and we now see if we can respond and be the team chasing down Ipswich Wanderers.
"We can only do our job, and if we do end up getting 15 points from these next five games and we end up sitting there on 90 points and we come second, fair play, well done Ipswich Wanderers.
"But I think they'll be dropped points. It might be us, it might be them, it might be both but we've just got to concentrate on making sure it's not us and talking it game by game which has got us to this point in the season.
"It's almost got us there today and unfortunately cruelly snatched away but listen, they are going to celebrate like that towards the end, they've got a big home crowd, they were 2-0 down and getting lost for a lot of the game and then things go their way and they manage to claw back three goals in what, 20 minutes and win a game 3-2. I mean that's escstacy, that's football.
"I don't have any gripes about them celebrating and enjoying that moment, fair play to them but we've got to move on now."
He confirmed goalkeeper Tom Smith, who did not emerge for the second half following a late challenge when coming to claim a free kick, which saw Joel Glover eventually shown a yellow card, had seen him go to hospital to be checked out.
He said: "It looks like he's got a couple of broken ribs, he's gone to hospital. That's what happens when you get studs in the ribcage but there you go, that's another story."
He felt his side deserved to win the game until the first red card came in the 87th minute but credited Wanderers for the way they reacted to take advantage of the situation.
"I thought they were sensible, they could have got the ball on the floor and tried to carve their way through and dribble which would have been more our style, probably," he said.
"They didn't. They got the ball to people with good delivery and put the ball into the box with big bodies, crowded the 18-yard box and tried to work on not just winning the firsts but winning the seconds with the extra man or two advantage and that paid dividends, fair play, smart strategy.
"And because of that I would probably have said a draw, overall, would probably have been fair. But I think they earned the draw through that.
"However, I don't think it should have been nine versus 11 in the first place."
Despite admitting substitute goalkeeper Rodgers was at fault for the hosts' first goal, he was quick to point out the subsequent saves he made and felt it was ultimately the red cards which cost them.
"He will look at that first one afterwards, and he aplogised after, and think he should do better and rightly so," he said.
"But he has equally made a save to his bottom left from that free kick that you could forgive him if he didn't. So that isn't the reason we lost.
"I think obviously the first goal changes momentum a little bit but it was more the sending off that changed the dynamic of that game.
"I think 11 v 11 at 2-1 we see that out."
He confirmed Emmnauel Machaya's absence from the squad had been down to a 'family issue' that had required him to take some time out and is set to see him miss the reunion with his former loan club Melford this weekend.
