Malcolm Dawson writes….we looked like a team that knows what it’s about today. At least for the first hour or so. Borini, Gomez and Toivonen started but lacking match fitness began to tire after the hour mark. All the new boys looked good. M’Vila slotted into the holding role well and his tireless running and coolness on the ball meant that a more confident PVA also turned in a good performance. It is hard to fault anyone in the starting line up and we could have been ahead when a great run from Defoe put him one on one with the keeper only to see his shot rattle the post. An inch or two further right and it would have bounced into the net but instead it went safe. Not long afterwards he again broke clear and should have had a penalty when he was clearly pulled back and denied a clear cut shooting opportunity. That’s how it looked from my seat and I’ll wait for MOTD to prove my eyes aren’t that bad. One or two nil up and it could all have been so different. Dick is as happy as any manager can be when he’s seen his team lose but I’m in agreement with the sentiments he expresses in his post match e-mail to M. Salut and the rest of the SAFC supporting world.
Dear Colin,
I think we deserved more than zero points but we can still be proud of the way we played.
The team gave everything to get a result and you could see that from the fans – even after the game was 1-0 they applauded the players. The way we played football-wise is also improving a lot and I think that is what the fans like to see. There is no doubt it is the best we have played this season.
We went for the attack, went to score goals and we had opportunities, but we failed score and at the end you get one goal which is unlucky but also because of the quality of Spurs.
If we keep working like this and keep playing like this the points will come.
Thanks for your support,
Dick Advocaat
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