A frustrated Scott Booth shared his thoughts after his Aberdeen Women side drew 1-1 with Spartans on Wednesday night in Edinburgh.
“It is a frustrating night. I think it took us a while to get going. The first fifteen, twenty minutes, wasn’t there, so it took us a while to get going in the game.
“Then we kind of found our rhythm a bit. I think the final 25 of the first half, we were more on top. We were able to control the game better. The only thing that let us down a number of times was in the final third when we gave the ball away again. Some good decisions in possession, but we weren’t tidy enough to carve out the opportunities.
“We get the goal, and at that point, I felt in control of the game. My worry was that we would continue with that little bit of untidiness in our game. I think that followed through in the second half where we allowed the game to become a transitional game again. A team like Spartans, they’ll work really hard. They’ll chase everyone down.
“They’re quite happy to play a more transitional game. Our job tonight was to make sure that didn’t happen, and we didn’t do that. We allowed it to become a game that they wanted. And we lose a crazy goal – we got a corner kick and two seconds later, the ball’s in the back of our net. So that was poor.
“It shouldn’t happen. And then for the rest of the game, it was just as scrappy as you like.
“Kerry had a fantastic chance just a couple of minutes before they score. That’s a chance I think normally she would put away. That didn’t happen. We then get the corner from it and we allow them to break on us. I don’t think they had many chances in the end, but they take that one, and that’s how it can be when you don’t control the game.
“In the games where we’ve had the vast majority of possession, we’ve been able to be calm and transfer that possession into chances and wins. But when we allow it to become a transitional game, it favours a team like Spartans and some other teams in the league. Our job over the next four games coming up is to make sure we control the games and are good enough to do that and brave enough to do it. You can only do that if you’re tidy with it, if you get detailed on your passes, give your teammate the right ball. We know we can do that because we have, but I think this game was far too transitional for us.
“The alternative to playing our way is something that we’re not set up for. It’s not our strength. It’s a strength of other teams in the league, but we’ve got our own strengths and we have to play to our strengths.
“Sunday’s a massive game. Montrose will still remain a massive game. It’s down to details. There’s going to be nothing in it a lot of the time. You have to take your opportunities when they come, and you certainly don’t present your opposition with opportunities.”
