One final day out for Parkway
Hanwell Town vs Parkway | Match PreviewBy Jack Hobbs
Plymouth Parkway are looking to end their season on a positive note against Hanwell Town this Saturday following a disappointing home loss to Frome Town on Monday.
The Yellows failed to give the Bolitho faithful a good showing in their final home game of the season, losing 0-3 to an already relegated Robins side.
Speaking on Monday’s performance, manager Chris McPhee said: “It’s really tricky for me to sum up.”
“I felt that there was really poor start and a really poor approach from us. From the very first whistle, conceding early, but Frome did everything they possibly could to put us off our game, to knock us out of our stride and we never recovered.
“We never really were able to mentally put things aside and focus on what we need to do in order to be successful and what we’ve done in previous games to be successful and control games.
“We were poor with the ball. We made some poor choices. Our movement wasn’t in sync with our normal game.
“The only real joy we had again was when we pressed them and won the ball back and play out on the pitch into areas where we could break and score. I look back at the first half and think we didn’t play particularly great, but we still had three or four chances.
“The difference at halftime is the fact they took their chances and we, unfortunately didn’t. It’s been the story of our season in certain areas, especially in the early part of the season, where our opposition tend to take every opportunity that comes their way in early parts of the game, and that puts us right on the back foot.
“We need to learn very quickly so we can be better next season. Learn from these experiences, learn from similar experiences we’ve had this season, not just the group of players, but his group of staff as well, to make sure that we’re more we’re more focused, to be able to do certain things and to be just more consistent in key parts of the game.”
Speaking on failing to deliver a winning end to the season at Bolitho, the 41-year-old said: “To be at Bolitho on the last day with lovely weather, with a fantastic group of people who come to watch us play week in, week out, who have seen us come so far, and were hoping for a successful end to the season in terms of having that feel good factor going into the close season – we haven’t delivered.
“I apologise. I take it on the chin from myself, and I feel their disappointment. I feel their frustration.
“We’re just very fortunate that we’ve done our work over the last six or seven weeks to have enough points on the board that we’re not desperate for the points, but we should still be desperate for the result, desperate for the performance, desperate for that individual pride that should be there every single game, regardless on regardless of what the consequences are.
“The fact that we’re not scrapping for points right now to save ourselves is the only positive that we can take out. We should have been better.”
After losing back-to-back games, Parkway are unable to beat their record league position and points tally in the Southern Premier, but they are able to secure a respectable 11th place in the division should they put Hanwell Town to the sword.
Hanwell sit 10th in the table, five points ahead of Parkway in 12th, and like the Yellows, have won three and lost two of their last five league games.
Speaking on ending the season strongly, McPhee said: “At the end of the day, it comes down to that professional pride.”
“I was looking around the changing room and there were a lot of quiet faces, but I hope they’re not feeling sorry for themselves. I genuinely don’t want them to be feeling sorry for themselves because the end of day, we got what we deserved again.
“They should be feeling really disappointed with their performance, disappointed by their levels of professionalism because that was all it was we asked before the game for focus on application, application and the right attitude.
“Unfortunately, that wasn’t there enough on Monday throughout the team, and that’s ultimately what’s cost us. It wasn’t necessarily our quality or the fact that we couldn’t create, it was just our attitude and application.
“Frome were prepared to put their foot in. They were prepared to really get after us and sprint back to their own goal, bodies on the line, and we just didn’t produce that.
“The only positive is that we haven’t picked up any injuries, and hopefully we go into the Hanwell game exactly the same in terms of making sure that we’re finishing the season in the right frame of mind and on the right foot.
“We said to the players off the pitch, we’ve got one more game to close the season, and we don’t want to go out on a negative after we’ve come so far.
“It’s really disappointing to pick up two defeats on the on the bounce in the manner that we have done, because we’re a far better group of players and what we’ve shown and we’ve got to make sure that with one game to go, we improve that.”
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