Downes: We’ve got to step up
Flynn Downes has called on Southampton to be more ruthless after Saints were denied victory by a late Lincoln City equaliser.
Welington’s spectacular first-half strike put the visitors ahead at the ProAmpac Stadium, but Mikkel Ladefoged levelled late on to secure a draw for the hosts.
Having also surrendered a lead in Tuesday night’s draw at Birmingham City, Downes was frustrated that Saints were unable to see out the game for a second successive outing.
“I’m disappointed. I’m fuming, to be honest,” he admitted. “That isn’t good enough. We’ve got to win games like this. It was the same on Tuesday – we’ve got to see games out.
“To come away from home, one nil up has got to be enough. Everyone has got to step up. We said that in the changing room. We’re already in an uphill battle this season and we can’t afford to drop points here. We’ve got to win these games. It’s as simple as that.”
Downes felt Saints moved away from their own style as the match entered its closing stages, allowing the Imps to apply pressure with a more direct approach.
“We can’t have that mindset of trying to protect it, because you saw what happened today.
“We knew how Lincoln were going to play. They were going to go long, make it physical and compete for first and second balls. That’s not us, and we knew we would get beaten if we got caught up in that.
We’ve got to step up. The lads on the pitch and the boys coming on, all of us have got to step up. We haven’t got time for that.”
Saints return home on Tuesday 8th September, as Swansea City visit St Mary's in the Sky Bet Championship (7.45pm BST). Tickets are on general sale now, priced from £20 for Adults and £10 for Under-18s.
