Defender Kyle Ferguson did not feel Yeovil Town showed enough of themselves in their 2-0 home defeat to Forest Green Rovers on Saturday night.
The 26-year-old, who was named the sponsors’ Man of the Match on a rain-soaked night at Huish Park, agreed with his manager Billy Rowley that the Glovers were not brave enough to take on the visitors who played the final 25 minutes with ten men.
Speaking to BBC Somerset’s Jack Killah after the game, Ferguson said: “I don’t think we gave a good showing of ourselves and what we can do especially when you compare it with the last three games, but that is something that is going to happen, there is going to be bumps in the road. It is still a relatively new team, still teething really, but now we just need to bounce back in the next game.
“I think we could keep the ball a bit better, me included, be a bit more calm, be braver. The conditions were not great, but I don’t want to use that as an excuse because it is the same for both teams. Sometimes this happens and as players we just need to have to make sure it does not happen again next week.”
Yeovil fell behind after they were cut apart by Forest Green’s wide players and striker Temi Babalola slotted the opener after just quarter-of-an-hour, before an unfortunate own goal for goalkeeper Jed Ward on the hour mark sealed Rowley’s first defeat in charge.
The visitors had midfielder Harry Bunker dismissed for a second yellow card five minutes after extending their lead, but comfortably saw out the final minutes.
Ferguson added: “Everyone knew at half-time that we had not been good enough, the Gaffer came in and had words with us and that lit a fire under us, and we came out wanting to prove a point. Then they get the second goal and it is a lot harder, once they got a man sent off, I think we could have pushed a bit harder and kept the ball a bit better, but it was just one of those days, we could have played for ages and still struggled to score.”
The Scotsman has been an ever present since Rowley came in as manager having missed the previous two matches after an apparent fall out with the previous manager.
Asked about his return to the side, he said: “When the new Gaffer came in it was a clean slate for everybody which I was happy about because I had missed out previously, but that is football. I just kept my head down and kept working hard and then gone straight back to work to show what I can do and with a few games on the bounce now I am enjoying my football again.”
Yeovil now travel to bottom side Truro City, who had a long trip for a 4-0 defeat at York City on Saturday, before back-to-back league home games against Eastleigh on 30th December and Braintree Town on 3rd January.
Ferguson added: “It is a great chance to bounce back, we are lucky that the games at so close together because everybody just wants to play football when you have just lost. It is a quick turnaround because we can get back in and put things right.“