Skip to main content Skip to site footer
Interviews

Post Sunderland | Steve Cotterill

7 January 2023

Manager Steve Cotterill spoke to the media after Shrewsbury suffered FA Cup heartbreak against Sunderland.

Following an impressive team performance, Town led 1-0 heading into stoppage time thanks to an excellent header from Matthew Pennington.

But a 92nd-minute goal from in-demand striker Ross Stewart and a 94th-minute strike from Luke O'Nien saw The Black Cats snatch a place in the fourth round of the world's oldest knockout competition right at the end.

Despite being hugely disappointed to lose so late, Steve said he was immensely proud of his players when speaking post-match.

And the boss also praised the performance of debutant Killian Phillips who impressed in central midfield whilst also saying how pleased he was to see Julien Dacosta make his first appearance for the club since October.

ON THE GAME:

"It is tough to take because after 90 minutes we're in the fourth round.

"I'm really lost for words at the moment but I'm really proud of the boys - it was an immense effort.

"The game plan went exactly like we thought it would and the game went like we thought it would. 

"We spoke in the week about the changes we were going to make to try and zip things up a bit with 70 minutes on the clock. We just ran out of legs or luck at the death there.

"They've had to bring their big guns on and they've already started a few of their big guns.

"I think it was an incredible effort by our lads and we definitely don't deserve to be beaten. Like I said, at 90 minutes, we were in the fourth round.

"The boys were terrific today and I'm really, really, pleased with them. I can't speak highly enough of them. I thought it was an incredible debut by Killian Phillips - I think he was immense in there.

"I'm just so disappointed for them. I just said to them that they have nothing to be down about. They gave their all against a team that are flying in the Championship.

"They're not down in the lower echelons struggling or anything like that. They're a really good team with some really good players and for 90 minutes, we thought we'd done it.

"Unfortunately there were four minutes of added-on time and I feel a bit speechless really."

ON KILLIAN PHILLIPS:

"Just before I finished talking to the boys, I said to them what an incredible debut by a young man. 

"The lads gave him a round of applause and rightly so. 

"As you can see, he is another one – that for the next few months here – he is going to be all in for us. 

"He is a terrific lad, I am so, so, pleased for him. He has only been here 10 days and he is absolutely gutted in there that we have been beaten. 

"That means that he has bought into it already. We are really disappointed with the result but I can’t be any prouder of the players. 

"We might have just lost the three games before it – but we haven’t been out of any of those games. 

"We have got to make sure that we battle our way through this tough period where everyone will just look at the results. We understand that. 

"But we have been far better than the results have dished out to us over the last three or four games. Far better." 

ON JULIAN DACOSTA: 

"I was pleased that we were able to get Julian Dacosta back on the pitch even if it was only for a short period of time."

ON SHREWSBURY'S FANS:

"We desperately wanted to give them that fourth-round game. The further you go in the competition, you get the bigger clubs. 

"We have already played a huge one in Sunderland.

"By the crowd today, we have more than done our turn in the FA Cup by churning out some good finances for the football club. 

"Now it’s back to our bread-and-butter stuff. We have got to climb ourselves up that league table. We have played far better than what the table is dealing us at the moment."

Generic-Web-Banner-Home-22-23.jpg


Advertisement block

iFollow Next Match Tickets Account