Small lapses in concentration cost us in Coleraine defeat, says Carrick Rangers chief Stephen Baxter
Carrick Rangers boss Stephen Baxter lamented the goal his side conceded as they were edged out by Coleraine at Taylors Avenue.
In a low-key contest in east Antrim, Rhyss Campbell's effort proved to be the difference as the Bannsiders attacker was able to send the ball over the line after Carrick failed to clear their lines from a corner.
In truth, the scrappy goal befitted the game as neither team failed to overly impress on a difficult playing surface as Carrick remain winless in the Premiership since a 2-1 win at Ballymena on November 30.
"We most definitely should have got something from the game,” Baxter said.
"I think we probably had the lion's share of this today - but lion share doesn't get you the result if the other team scores and you don't.
"It was such a terrible goal to concede and how it crawls over the line...people don't defend the ball in a crowded box, so it was such a soft goal and a terrible way to lose a football match.
"We piled on pressure after pressure but we didn't get that breakthrough.
"That's the tale of the tape...it was a hard fought game, everyone working incredibly hard, we've battled hard in the last two games and been magnificent performance-wise but those small lapses in concentration are costing us dearly."
Carrick have also struggled to find the back of the net in their recent Premiership commitments, scoring twice in their last eight contests.
Baxter is hopeful that his raft of new arrivals in the January transfer window can help bring that run to an end.
He stated: "You can't start losing faith about what you're doing and how you're doing it.
"There's a batch of new players here, they're all fitting into the team and you're trying to find a style of play that will fit those players and bring that quality.
"Jack O'Reilly came on for 15 minutes here today who is not fully fit but he's a great player.
"We will work at it, we've got to get it right as there's only a short period of time to do that but we haven't been scoring enough goals this season and that's definitely a worry.
"Let's hope people like Adam Foley who has joined recently and others can chip in with the goals that we need.”