Harrogate Town v Stevenage FC: We don't have time to enjoy wins, never mind dwell on defeats, says Josh Falkingham

Josh Falkingham has provided an interesting insight into Harrogate Town’s mindset heading into this evening’s clash with Stevenage.
Harrogate Town captain Josh Falkingham in action against Colchester United. Pictures: Matt KirkhamHarrogate Town captain Josh Falkingham in action against Colchester United. Pictures: Matt Kirkham
Harrogate Town captain Josh Falkingham in action against Colchester United. Pictures: Matt Kirkham

Having suffered just their second League Two defeat since promotion to the EFL when they lost a game they really ought to have won at Colchester last time out, the Sulphurites are determined to bounce back at the first opportunity.

And, while he concedes that Saturday’s 2-1 loss still rankles given how well Town played, Falkingham insists that neither he nor his team-mates have time to dwell on what might have been.

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Indeed, such is the relentless nature of life in League Two, the Harrogate skipper even went on to say that the club has barely even had chance to savour any of their recent victories.

Town managed 21 shots at goal against Colchester, but only scored once.Town managed 21 shots at goal against Colchester, but only scored once.
Town managed 21 shots at goal against Colchester, but only scored once.

“Obviously we’re very frustrated after Saturday, because we know we should have taken something from the game. We’ve had a lot of success in recent years and have become accustomed to winning matches,” he told the Harrogate Advertiser.

“I just hate losing, end of. But, we can’t afford to spend too much time thinking about Saturday or over-analysing it. As a group, we never get too low after a loss or too high after any victory.

“And honestly, with the relentless nature of this league, we don’t have chance to dwell on anything. We haven’t even had time to be able to enjoy the previous four games, all of which we’ve won.

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“Our focus is just on the the next one, which is Stevenage, and on making sure we‘ve learned from where we went wrong at Colchester and that we’re at our best for what is another big game.”

When Falkingham says that Town must learn from where they went wrong at Colchester, he is referring to his side’s wastefulness in the final third.

Harrogate managed 21 shots at goal, five of which were on target, but they scored only once when they could conceivably have had the game won before half-time.

“I think that’s pretty much all it is, not putting the ball in the net,” he added.

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“We had a lot of opportunities at Colchester and we’re averaging something like 20 shots per game at the moment, which is incredible. We’re not scoring many, however, which means our conversion rate is a big negative.

“Putting the ball in the back of the net is the hardest thing to do in football, so all we’re worrying about is making sure that - as a team - the next chance that comes, we put it away.

"We just need to keep cool heads in front of goal."

Some of their finishing aside, Town's start to the season has, on the whole, been an extremely positive one.

“It’s important to remember that overall we’ve had a good start and have played very well in the majority of matches," Falkingham continued.

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"We'd 100 percent have taken this start if you'd have offered it to us before a ball was kicked. Saturday was disappointing, but that's part of football. You won't win every game and you don't always get what you deserve.

“Things would be a hell of a lot worse if we weren’t creating all these chances in the first place. The confidence is flowing throughout the team, I think everyone can see that, it’s just important that we capitalise when we’re on top.”

Town v Stevenage kicks-off at the EnviroVent Stadium tonight (Tuesday) at 7pm.