Carlisle 1 Latics 0

Last updated : 29 September 2019 By The Chairman

Dino Maamria summed up the performance at Carlisle, his first defeat as head coach, as follows. The Latics went down 1-0 after suffereing an early goal setback.

Maamria said, "There were some good bits, some not so good bits. I think the biggest thing is you don't come to places like this and concede the goal with the manner that we conceded in the third minute. They've not won since the 3rd August I think at home. The game-plan obviously was to make sure we stay in the game and we try and get that first goal because that would put them under pressure. I thought our start was very, very sloppy. We controlled the game after that, we had some brilliant chances especially in the second-half. We could've easily got one in and I think if we got one in we'd have gone on to win it. We didn't, but it's another learning day for me in terms of learning about the players. I think we've got a good group, but last week was a fantastic performance and this week you see the level, they dropped the level.”

"I think the learning bit there is if you're going to be serious about winning, win after win to do that, you've got to win and do more the following week to win again. But I think that's something I need to instil in this group of players because technically they're good enough. They're good lads, there's no bad eggs there and are a pleasure to work with, but I think they need to learn how to win games consistently. How to go and win, after win, after win because if we are serious this season, if we are going to have any ambition this season, we should come to this place with no disrespect to Carlisle, we should win. We didn't today, it's learning for us but probably the biggest thing for me was the fantastic support we got today. I'm not sure how many we brought down. I want to thank every one of them, they were brilliant. I'm disappointed we didn't give them the performance they deserve.”

"So hopefully we've got to make sure now we bounce back next week against Cheltenham and make sure we give those fans that have travelled today, with numbers and backed us from the first minute till the 94th minute, we owe them one and I've got to make sure that the players next week put on a performance for those fans that turned up today and the home fans as well. Well, talking about the referee it's an unbelievable afternoon. It was a free-kick, clearly a free-kick, they had everything they got really today. Every little help they had. You expect it though when you come to places like Carlisle you expect to get nothing from anything really. Having said that, I think we should look after ourselves first and we should manage that better. We shouldn't dwell on the ball in the middle of the park there. For Missilou to be fouled and take a chance with the referee to give it or not to give it. But the build-up, yeah it was a free-kick and they've gone on and scored on the back of it."

"It's clear that we need a centre-forward. We've got two forwards at the club, clearly we need something on the top of the pitch and that's something to work with. I know it's outside of the window now so we need to look at free agents. I know where we need to strengthen. But it's that difficult period now of the season, the window is closed and only free agents are available, so we'll try and bring someone in if we can. Otherwise I've got what I've got. We've got to make sure that we create more to score more goals. We dominated possession, I think it was 60-40 possession. I think we had twelve shots to their three or four and we dominated every department, we just didn't have that cutting edge today. Like I said, if Maouche's chance is scored early in the second-half, it's a clear-cut chance, I'm sure we would have gone on to win the game. But we didn't, we learn from that and again another message I give to the players out there, when you go away from home you've got to be clinical because you might get two or three chances you've got to put at least one of them away. We didn't do that today."

"The result is not good, it's not something we came here for. But I think I've found out about certain players, the subs I made as well. I'm finding about the characters of players the more I see of them, the more decisions they give me the next week and the week after and the more decisions they give me going onto January. I'm here to win football matches and I've got to make sure that I've got winning players around me, I've got winning people around me and I'll do that."