Why Portsmouth defeat was 'hard to take' for Morecambe and former Motherwell boss Stephen Robinson despite answering Sunderland questions

Morecambe boss Stephen Robinson admitted defeat to Pompey was a hard pill to swallow.
Watch more of our videos on Shots! 
and live on Freeview channel 276
Visit Shots! now

Before the Shrimps’ trip to Fratton Park, the former Motherwell manager demanded a response from his side following their 5-0 mauling to Sunderland last Tuesday.

And the 47-year-old believed his side answered the questions asked of them following their North East nightmare.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

This saw them create a number of half-chances in the second half, but failed to force Gavin Bazunu into any meaningful saves until the game was beyond them.

Despite this, Robinson felt his Shrimps had dominated large portions of the game.

Speaking to the club’s official website he said: ‘It’s a difficult one to take

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

‘I thought it was a very good performance at times, it’s hard to sit here and say that when you’ve lost 2-0, we’ve come here and dominated large areas of the game, played in areas we wanted to play in.

Morecambe boss Stephen Robinson.   Picture: Ian MacNicol/Getty ImagesMorecambe boss Stephen Robinson.   Picture: Ian MacNicol/Getty Images
Morecambe boss Stephen Robinson. Picture: Ian MacNicol/Getty Images

‘I thought we played well first half, even better second half, after a 5-0 defeat, it’s a case of trying to regain confidence which they did, so it’s hard for me to criticise the players.

‘It certainly gives me more hope than Tuesday night.

‘If we play like that, and that energy, and that commitment, we will win more games than we’ll lose in the next three.’

Striker Jonathan Obika made his debut against the Blues after returning to full fitness.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

And Robinson believes the partnership between him and leading marksman Cole Stockton will be key in maintaining their League One status.

He added: ‘We had Jon Obika fit, which gives us a platform, we knew we had to take him off at 60 minutes and get him off medically.

‘That’s another 60 for Jon and I believe him and Cole will cause massive problems.

‘Six months after I signed him as my main signing, he’s made his debut so, it’s been a long road for him.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

‘He’s come back, he looks like he hasn’t been away, he’ll get better and better as the games go.’

A message from the Editor, Mark WaldronYou can support our local team of expert Pompey writers by subscribing here for all the latest news from Fratton Park for 14p a day.