Iron boss Mark Robins felt that the second goal effectively killed his side off in their 2-0 defeat at Crewe on Saturday, but was pleased to have a week to prepare for the next game.
United fell behind to a powerful strike from Greg Leigh, before Marcus Haber’s goal just moments later sealed the result for the hosts and meant Scunthorpe returned empty-handed.Robins felt that there was not much in the game, but that the nature of the first goal shocked his team and that they were not able to properly regroup.
The manager told The Iron Player: “I think it rocked us and we sat ten yards deeper. I thought first half we were fine and the positioning of our play was fine.
“We were able to get in the faces of their midfield, and then all of a sudden the midfield just started to drop a little bit.
“The back four's dropped a bit, which means the midfield's dropped a bit and then the strikers are a little bit further up field, giving them a chance to get the ball further forward with more quality as they aren't under as much pressure.
“We've ended up in our box and we've got three players to deal with a straight forward cross into the box and it's not been dealt with.
“All of sudden it's two and I think we've got to deal with it and be more aggressive to deal with those situations in games.”
The Iron boss tried to inject some energy into his side in an attempt to impact the game, but felt the two quick goals meant they were chasing the game.
He opted to bring Neal Bishop, who returned from suspension, back onto the bench, instead keeping the same midfield as Tuesday after an impressive showing.
Robins said: “I think the overriding thoughts were on the previous game and also in terms of fatigue levels.
“Everyone was doing okay, so it was a case of giving them another go and in the knowledge that Bish is on the bench to make that change and give us a lift in the second half, when you know you may need a bit of extra energy.”
“I thought Hakeeb Adelakun coming on gave us a little bit more energy and Kyle Wootton certainly did as well, in a time in the game where ideally you want to make those changes before the goals.”
The Iron boss was disappointed that his side could not get a result at Crewe, but was pleased to have a week off to prepare for the visit of Sheffield United.
He said: “It's frustrating and disappointing, but that's gone and there's another game to be played, and we have another week to work on what we need to work on to get the result next week.”
See much more from Mark Robins, Conor Townsend and Liam O'Neil on The Iron Player.