Struggling Stevenage did not deserve Crawley defeat – boss Alex Revell

Posted Sunday, February 23, 2020 by PA

New Stevenage manager Alex Revell felt his bottom-of-the-table side did not get what they deserved after goals from Bez Lubala and Ashley Nadesan sentenced them to a 2-0 Sky Bet League Two defeat at Crawley.

Boro remain eight points adrift with 11 games remaining and Revell beleives his men “didn’t deserve” a seventh-successive league loss in their desperate fight against relegation.

The 36-year-old, who has stepped up to replace Graham Westley, said: “The second goal was a killer goal but we didn’t deserve to lose.

“In patches, we showed some really good football but one of the negatives was the final ball and all season we’ve tried to work on it.

“In the first 15 minutes of the second half, you could definitely see the type of team we are.

“We had a golden opportunity to score and our play deserved it.”

Revell felt Boro paid a price for not scoring early in the second half and added: “The longer the game went on, it affected our decision-making.”

When asked what was needed to stay up, Revell replied: “Hard work. It’s a challenge but I saw positive signs. There is a good togetherness and spirit.”

Crawley head coach John Yems admitted his men were not at their best but felt his patched-up team deserved their victory.

The Reds are now unbeaten in their last eight home games, a run spanning three months, and Yems said: “We didn’t play that well.

“We have played a lot better and got beat but we stuck at it.

“The team was a bit lopsided and it is a compliment to the boys that we never gave in. Whatever 11 are in a Crawley shirt, they will give their all.

“We had seven players out who would have normally played.”

Crawley have finished in the bottom six three times in the previous four seasons, and Yems is seeking a much-improved finish to the campaign with the Reds currently 12th.

He added: “In whatever game, there is always something to fight for and some players are fighting for their contracts next year.”