JP - EVERYTHING BUT THE GOAL
Posted on: Sun 15 Feb 2009
By Matt Cecil
Wanderers striker Jon-Paul Pittman believes he and his team-mates were unlucky not to hit the back of the net in Saturday's defeat to Bradford City, but the debutant was in high spirits after beginning his Wycombe career with an impressive display in front of more than 12,000 supporters.
The deadline day recruit from Crawley Town was relatively unknown by most Blues followers when he walked into Adams Park two weeks ago but he gave a promising sign of things to come at Valley Parade, seeing a header cleared off the line, a bicycle kick flash just past the post and a strong penalty claim turned down.
"I thought we played superb and created plenty of chances but we just couldn't stick them away," he told wwfc.com. "On another day they might all go in so it was unlucky. It's frustrating when you work that hard and it doesn't happen for you but you can't let it get you down.
"It was my debut so I was very nervous and excited. It's a massive stadium and for the last year I've been stepping out in front of about 2,000 people so it's a big step-up, but you have to get into the mind-set that you've earned the right to be there and you can't let the occasion faze you."
The penalty appeal came midway inside the first-half when Pittman raced into the area and cut the ball on to his right foot before having his legs clipped by Bantams defender Matt Clarke, but referee Carl Boyeson waved away the claims much to the annoyance of the striker and his team-mates:
"I thought it was definitely a penalty," he said. "You're on your debut inside the 18-yard box so you're not going to go down that easily - I was practically one-on-one with the keeper. He clipped my heel but the ref said I went down too lightly, and once he's given his decision you have to live with it."
Nevertheless, the 22-year-old remained in an upbeat mood and revealed that he enjoyed working in tandem with strike partner with Matt Harrold:
"It's a really good partnership for me," he said. "One of the best times of my career was at Hartlepool when I was playing up-front with Jon Daly, and Matt plays a lot like him - he's a big striker with good technique and movement."
And Pittman confirmed that there are no signs of panic within the Wycombe camp despite a slight dip in form in recent weeks:
"Everyone's buzzing from day to day and there's no disbelief or anything like that. It didn't go our way today but I'm sure the boys have played worse than that and come away with a result.
"Teams go on a little blip sometimes but it's how you react to that - we'll work on some things, draw on the positives and get another run going."
Coming soon: Paul Dennis supplies the best photos from Saturday's clash, while Wanderers World takes a look ahead to the trip to Dagenham on Tuesday night.
Wanderers striker Jon-Paul Pittman believes he and his team-mates were unlucky not to hit the back of the net in Saturday's defeat to Bradford City, but the debutant was in high spirits after beginning his Wycombe career with an impressive display in front of more than 12,000 supporters.
The deadline day recruit from Crawley Town was relatively unknown by most Blues followers when he walked into Adams Park two weeks ago but he gave a promising sign of things to come at Valley Parade, seeing a header cleared off the line, a bicycle kick flash just past the post and a strong penalty claim turned down.
"I thought we played superb and created plenty of chances but we just couldn't stick them away," he told wwfc.com. "On another day they might all go in so it was unlucky. It's frustrating when you work that hard and it doesn't happen for you but you can't let it get you down.
"It was my debut so I was very nervous and excited. It's a massive stadium and for the last year I've been stepping out in front of about 2,000 people so it's a big step-up, but you have to get into the mind-set that you've earned the right to be there and you can't let the occasion faze you."
The penalty appeal came midway inside the first-half when Pittman raced into the area and cut the ball on to his right foot before having his legs clipped by Bantams defender Matt Clarke, but referee Carl Boyeson waved away the claims much to the annoyance of the striker and his team-mates:
"I thought it was definitely a penalty," he said. "You're on your debut inside the 18-yard box so you're not going to go down that easily - I was practically one-on-one with the keeper. He clipped my heel but the ref said I went down too lightly, and once he's given his decision you have to live with it."
Nevertheless, the 22-year-old remained in an upbeat mood and revealed that he enjoyed working in tandem with strike partner with Matt Harrold:
"It's a really good partnership for me," he said. "One of the best times of my career was at Hartlepool when I was playing up-front with Jon Daly, and Matt plays a lot like him - he's a big striker with good technique and movement."
And Pittman confirmed that there are no signs of panic within the Wycombe camp despite a slight dip in form in recent weeks:
"Everyone's buzzing from day to day and there's no disbelief or anything like that. It didn't go our way today but I'm sure the boys have played worse than that and come away with a result.
"Teams go on a little blip sometimes but it's how you react to that - we'll work on some things, draw on the positives and get another run going."
Coming soon: Paul Dennis supplies the best photos from Saturday's clash, while Wanderers World takes a look ahead to the trip to Dagenham on Tuesday night.
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