Simon Weaver tells Harrogate Town players to keep heads up after 'cruel' defeat to Oldham Athletic
Harrogate Town boss Simon Weaver does not want his players to get too downbeat following their 1-0 defeat to Oldham Athletic.
A goal from Jake Leake was enough to decide the game at Boundary Park, intensifying Harrogate fears of relegation from League Two.
Harrogate enjoyed more possession than their opponents and even registered more shots.
However, the Sulphurites came away with nothing to show for their efforts.
Simon Weaver’s analysis
Weaver said: “To lose the game feels a bit cruel because I thought it was a very good performance, we created numerous good chances and played some very attractive football. We were guilty of not taking any of those chances today.
“I thought we played some tremendous attacking football but you’ve got to score when you’re on top and we didn’t.
“We kept probing and the spirit was very good, good energy throughout. I don’t think the performance was any different from the 3-0 victory [at Tranmere] the other night, other than finding the target.
“We found the inside of the post, found the ‘keeper, we didn’t find the back of the net, which is a shame for the lads. But they can’t be too downbeat, results have gone our way. We still have to be upbeat and move on straight away.”
The Oldham Athletic view
Oldham boss Micky Mellon, meanwhile, managed to celebrate his new contract with a victory.
He said: “I’m delighted, but it’s not about me, it’s about us winning games of football and I’m delighted that we won it today and I’m delighted that I’m going to be Oldham’s manager for the next two-and-a-half years.
“We definitely had to look to the bench today so all credit to the guys that came off the bench, we really needed them and they gave us that bit of energy.
“We had to be resilient and just dig in and make sure you don’t give anything away, because we feel that eventually we’ll get you.
“It was a great atmosphere at this time of the season. It’s good that we’re involved in all that now. We didn’t want the season to fizzle out and we’re in the hunt.”