The Voice of Spalding and South Holland
Wellingborough Town 3
Holbeach United 0
Angry boss Seb Hayes admitted that he lost his cool with his Holbeach United players after seeing them crumble 3-0 at Wellingborough Town on Saturday.
After making a strong start to the ChromaSport UCL Premier Division clash, Hayes watched as the Tigers collapsed following first-half goals from Jack Wisniewski (11) and Adam Speight (35).
The Holbeach boss went attacking and threw on striker Charley Sanders at half-time, but goal number three soon arrived for the hosts via Jake Gillingwater (50).
Hayes felt his side were outworked and outfought – and told his players as much at the end. But what annoyed him even more was the fact that the Holbeach dressing room openly admitted that he was right in his assessment.
Having won 2-0 against high-flying Eynesbury in their last outing, Hayes also felt this performance wasn’t even 20 per cent as good as that one.
“We should have been 3-0 up early on,” bemoaned the Tigers boss. “That’s how dominant we were.
“But, as soon as they scored, it buoyed them. And, when it went 2-0, we were gone and you could see it.
“I tried to be positive at half time and go on the attack, but they soon made it 3-0 and we just sank again.
“I can handle losing football matches. But, when my players are like this, I haven’t got a chance.
“To be outfought and outworked is hard to take. But when the players agreed with that verdict after the game, I lost my cool and went crazy at them.
“I just don’t see how a side containing ten of the 11 players that did so well against Eynesbury can perform at 20 per cent of that level the following week.
“It’s making me look stupid. I’m not washing my hands of the results, I take responsibility as I pick the team. But the team has to be accountable too.
“I’ve had ten league games here and we’ve won five, lost five. In the five we’ve won, we’ve scored first and kept clean sheets.
“That says a lot about us as a team. When things go our way, we win. But when they don’t, we just collapse.
“The inconsistency is infuriating.”
The defeat sees Holbeach drop down to ninth place in the table and they are now nine points off the top six.
Tigers: Drury, Nicholson (Madigan 78), Stevens, N Jackson, Cartwright, Tinkler, Muldrew (Sanders 46), Dougill, Munton, Clitheroe (Millinson 75), Griffiths. Not used: Pinner, Warfield, Madigan.
Attendance: 84.
