Show me what you’re made of - boss
Reporter: MATTHEW CHAMBERS
Date published: 12 January 2011
PAUL Dickov has called on his young Athletic side to show their character by bouncing back from last night’s humiliation and producing a positive response at Plymouth on Saturday.
Acknowledging it was “men against boys” as Southampton knocked his side for six at Boundary Park, Dickov said: “We have another game on Saturday and it is a big one for us.
“We stand up, dust ourselves down and go again.”
The 6-0 hammering by Saints was Athletic’s biggest defeat home or away since Cardiff won 7-1 at Boundary Park in March, 2002.
It leaves the squad shell-shocked at the halfway point of the npower League One season.
Dickov – who started his post-match press conference with a tribute to Richard Butcher, the former Athletic midfielder who died earlier this week - hopes that lessons can be learned within the quick turnaround period.
“First and foremost, the thoughts of everyone at the football club goes out to his family,” said Dickov.
“Sometimes it puts everything in perspective.
“The game itself was very disappointing for us. We thought we had half a chance going into it.
“We met a very good team with a lot of very good players.
“We believe we have got good players in the team, but we didn’t perform.
“We didn’t start the game well, which is what we look for. They came out of the blocks quicker than we did, looked sharper than us and got the early goal.
“It was men against boys after that. But in that situation you have to learn, and grow quickly. It has to be a learning curve for us.
“To be beaten at any time is disappointing and the manner in which it happened I am not too happy with.
“We were second to everything all night. They are a very, very good team. They are strong and looked fitter than us.
“We are a young team who have done OK so far.
“You get setbacks and it is about how you react.
“Everybody is disappointed, but it has gone and we can’t change what has happened.
“We can only change what happens in the future.
“There is plenty of soul-searching to do, but we believe in what we are doing here and won’t shirk away from it.”
Southampton were up for the battle from the first minute right to the last in a game watched by Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson, his assistant Mike Phelan and his goalkeeping coach Eric Steele, who saw their own on-loan ’keeper Ben Amos experience a difficult night’s work.
Saints play host to United in the fourth round of the FA Cup in three weeks’ time and manager Nigel Adkins was pleased with his team’s fifth successive win.
“I don’t know yet if it is our best performance since I came to the club, but is a very good victory at a difficult place to come to,” said the Southampton boss.
“Sometimes when you look back on our games you think we aren’t ruthless enough.
“But we had six different goal scorers and have put ourselves in a good position for the second half of the season.”
ATHLETIC winger Aidan White says he is “touch-and-go” to make the weekend trip south to Plymouth.
The Leeds player has an ankle injury and will sign for the club on a loan basis only once fully recovered.
