Gillingham’s manager admitted they were too easy to score against on Saturday in their heavy home defeat.
Gareth Ainsworth’s side suffered a second-half collapse in their League Two game against Grimsby Town after conceding three goals inside 11 minutes.
Report: Gillingham 1 Grimsby Town 4
Ainsworth said: “We did alright up until their second goal and then we collapsed and that was it really. That’s the story of the game.
“At half-time [at 1-0 down], we put a few things in the boys’ minds where I think we could hurt Grimsby, and we did. We did it really well. We were on the ascendancy, and I thought we were going to get a second [after equalising].”
Andy Cook had opened the scoring towards the end of the first half but a great finish from Garath McCleary levelled it up.
McCleary was put in on goal with a chance to put then the Gills ahead, but narrowly missed, and straight away Grimsby retook the lead after a mistake from home keeper Glenn Morris.
“That’s football,” said the Gills boss, reacting to that pivotal moment. “I think Garath was unbelievable even to get on the end of that [second] chance. For somebody his age to be outpacing all those young boys and still look fantastic the way he does, he’s a big asset for us and he’s definitely played well.
“G-Mac obviously finished a brilliant solo effort [to have made it 1-1] after a great switch of play, and it was Armani (Little] who put him in. That’s one of the things that we worked on in training.
“[We were] definitely getting in behind, down the sides with Lenni (Cirino) and Seb (Palmer-Houlden) and Garath. It was looking all good, and then Glenn’s held his hand up and said sorry, but I’m saying he doesn’t need to be. He’s saved us so many times.
“He’s been an outstanding servant for this club, and he’s allowed the odd mistake.
“Unfortunately, we just seemed to collapse after that. [We] were so easy to score against at times that it was coming. It felt like it needed the end [of the game to come] really, as I need the end of the season now, because we know what the problem is, and I know what I’ve got to do.
“It’s not good enough. Honestly, it was a collapse. If it were a 2-1 [defeat], I could have come in and gone, ‘You know what, I’ll accept that’. It was a mistake by somebody who’s been fantastic for this football club, and every now and again, the keepers do make mistakes. Okay, fair enough. We can accept that.
“But the other goals were poor. There’s too much in them for me to go,’ wow, boys, how has that happened?’ We’ll have to be looking at it, trying to rectify it, and if I can’t do it with the players I’ve got, I’ll have to go and get players who can do it.”
Ainsworth remained pleased with the effort, however, adding: “I feel for some of the boys out there, because they put everything in and come away with nothing.
“A few have put their hands up in the dressing room for mistakes. We were very easy to score against, and that’s not a good trait of a successful team.
“I thought up until they scored their second, we were a match for them, and it was like, ‘Which team here is the one in the play-off [chase]?’ Then, eventually, you got that team because they took their goals well, and we don’t.
“We’re not as clinical, and we don’t defend as well – the story of the game. That was not good enough.”
