Latics boss bemoans spot-kick decision

PAUL Dickov believes his Athletic side should have been awarded a penalty late on in the 1-1 draw with Dagenham and Redbridge, when Reuben Reid appeared to be held by Oluwafemi Ilesanmi.

Striker Reid struggled to get his shot away in the 84th minute incident, eventually managing an off-target strike, as referee Steve Rushton waved away the protests.

Dickov said: “The referee has come out and said it was not a penalty due to the fact Reuben managed to get his shot away — I didn’t realise the rules had changed!

“Reuben was pulled back three times by their defender, it should have been a penalty without a doubt.”

Despite admitting his disappointment at dropping two points, the Scot was happy with his players’ effort.

“I thought we played quite well overall,” he added.

“We knew it would be a difficult game, as John Still has got his players well drilled. They all knew what they were doing and how to defend against our style of play.

“It was a patient display from us, and we took a 1-0 lead through a good goal from Dale (Stephens). But once again we have paid the price for switching off — the only time we switched off in 94 minutes.

“There is no point in concentrating for 93 minutes and 59 seconds, it has to be the entire match. I keep saying we have to learn and we will learn.

“Missed chances cost us ultimately. We have to be a bit more ruthless in front of goal, because plenty of good opportunities went begging.

“I think we probably had enough chances to win two games but we just could not finish them off, unfortunately. All in all, I am still fairly pleased with our performance.”

The manager does not believe the draw dealt a major blow to Athletic’s promotion push.

He added: “We are still in the play-off places. It would have been nice to get all three points but we are still in the mix, having come an awful long way since the start of the season.

“We have gone six-games unbeaten and if we can repeat that a few more times we will do well.

“We are where we are on merit. This is good, young side trying to play football the right way. We have a strong unit here, on and off the pitch.

“You have to always take the positives, which is what we will do, and look forward to the next game, which is a tough one at Huddersfield.”