Cleverley On Plymouth: "We Wasted A Half"

Tom Cleverley admitted that the Hornets “wasted” 45 minutes after his side produced halves of very different quality during the 0-0 draw with Plymouth Argyle.

The Golden Boys could not get out of first gear before the break but they sparked into life after the restart against the Championship’s bottom club.

Argyle’s goal led a charmed life in front of the Rookery but Cleverley’s men could not find that all-important breakthrough.

“I’m disappointed,” the Head Coach said. “It’s a game we’ve not managed to win today, so we’ve not achieved our objective.

“I think we wasted the first half, really. Against a team who has come here to frustrate and play on the counter-attack, you have to be a bit more ruthless than that.

“You need to play with more intensity, more penetration, less unforced errors.

“We didn’t do that well enough, but in the second half the lads responded excellently to a strong half-time team-talk.

“We did everything bar put the ball in the back of the net. I’ve no complaints with the second half, that’s how I want my teams to play, but we wasted 45 minutes.”

Cleverley's tough team talk during the interval certainly had an impact as the team went up several levels.

“The players have shown character to respond,” he said. “They knew it wasn’t acceptable, the first half.

“They are mentally strong enough and big enough characters to take that on the chin and go and react.”

The Head Coach said that hard work would continue as the squad strives to produce consistent performances across the whole 90 minutes on a regular basis.

“We have struggled to be a complete team all season,” he said. “When the home form has been good, the away form has struggled.

“If the first half is not so good, the second half is strong. We’re not the only team, a lot of teams are up one week and down the next.

“That [consistency] is what we’re striving for. We will for sure work hard to find the answers.”

One positive from the day was the return of Kwadwo Baah from injury, with the forward showing glimpses of his best qualities on the right wing after being introduced in the second-half.

Caleb Wiley also impressed on his full debut at left-back and Academy 18-year-old Zavier Massiah-Edwards did well during a late cameo up front.

“It’s the area of our game that we’ve maybe lacked,” the boss said on Baah. “We’re showing great control in games, we’re getting into boxes or final thirds fairly easily, and in a structured way, and then we’re just missing something. He for sure brings that.

“Zavier has trained absolutely fantastic and he’s showed great form in the Youth Cup games.

“He’s had to be patient and he’s taken his chance today.

“I thought Caleb’s defensive work was excellent. Every counter-attack he’s got the legs to get back in, and he didn’t put a foot wrong in and out of possession.

“He’s athletic, he’s got quality on the ball. He won his aerial duels and he’s shown great attitude on the training field.”