‘Uncharacteristic’ back pain across Queen’s road woe leads to call for Irish League 'back to basics'
Queen’s University’s campaign of inconsistencies has featured periods of free-scoring football and spells of defensive resolve – but on Saturday the only consistent factor was failure on both fronts.
Having found the net on each of the Championship campaign’s first seven games, including a run of 13 goals scored across just three fixtures – Queen’s also could boast points built off a solid base at the back.
However, on a wet and windy afternoon against Annagh United in which Storm Boelo dictated the style of football on show, Queen’s had manager James Lavery searching for answers after failure in both danger zones.
Sam Sproule’s hat-trick fired high-flying Annagh to a 5-1 victory, with Henry Cromack and Craig Taylor the other home scorers as Queen’s had Matthew Hughes to thank for what proved little consolation on the road.
"Every team in this league is good but whenever you come to a top team you need to be really resolute defensively and better going forward...today we were neither,” said Lavery. "They obviously had that strong wind in the first half but we defended resolutely and, given the nature of those games, it's about trying to get in at half-time within reach of being able to go and win the game in the second half.
"And we were happy enough at half-time, okay we got hit on the counter-attack (1-0) and they’ve done well from their perspective but at half time we thought now's the time to come out, open up a wee bit, change a wee bit but not much and try to play on the front foot.
"We started off with plenty of goals this season.
"The game just run away from us...really, really poor in the second half to concede early, the nature of it as well.
"We didn't do enough to make a fist of it...the goals we conceded are so uncharacteristic of us.
"We're resolute, we're built on strong defence and the nature of the second half is just so disappointing because we tend not to concede that many goals.
"Once they went 2-0 then we probably went a bit 'gung-ho' trying to get back in the game and they have that quality to pick you off with the guys up front.
"The balls coming into the box on our heels...it's so unlike us and all absolutely completely preventable.
"Once the goals are going in, you're opening up more to try and chase it and you're leaving the back door open and they're picking us off.”
Hughes hitting the net to cut the deficit for 2-1 offered Queen’s an opportunity but Lavery finished frustrated at the game management.
"Matthew cuts in, does really well and gets it on his weaker left foot but puts it into the top corner with a really good finish,” said the Queen’s boss. "That was a big moment because it got us back in the game and an opportunity then to push on to really get a foothold in it.
"We went chasing too early, at 2-1 we should have kept a bit more stability.
"Then pretty soon after we concede again...really disappointed, it was an opportunity for us to put ourselves in the mix and hang around the top end.
"But if you concede goals like that we'll never be up and around it.
"We'll definitely address it because we work so hard in training and we always work on shape and so defensively organised...so probably back to basics."