Dean Smith Reflects on Loughgall’s Defeat to Crusaders

Loughgall’s manager, Dean Smith, stated his team must “defend better” following their 3-1 loss to Crusaders at Seaview, a result that leaves Loughgall at the bottom of the league standings. Philip Lowry initiated the scoring for Crusaders, followed by additional goals from Harry Franklin and Jordan Stewart. Robbie Norton managed to score for Loughgall, yet Smith acknowledged his dissatisfaction with his team’s performance in both offensive and defensive areas. “It was a game of fine margins, we have a few opportunities at 0-0, Tuffey makes some good saves, but we need to score when we get in the six-yard box because we get punished,” Smith informed BBC Sport NI. “They score with their first shot on target, the marking was poor, Philip Lowry is free and does what he does and then the second goal, from our point of view is very sloppy to give away, especially at a poor time before half-time and it’s a mountain to climb at 2-0.” Smith expressed particular disappointment regarding the defensive effort that led to the second goal, which occurred just before half-time. “It’s a goal we can avoid, we can defend a bit better but it’s a learning curve for our players that they have to defend better. We were a bit disappointed with our overall performance,” he further commented. “I think the second half is a bit of a non-event, Crusaders do well to score a third, we go up the other end and score, but it is probably too little too late.”