Young Iron striker Kyle Wootton feels that Scunthorpe were unlucky to miss out on a place in the milestone third round of Emirates FA Cup.
The Iron fell to a narrow 1-0 defeat at fellow League One opposition Shrewsbury Town in the second round at the Montgomery Waters Meadow Stadium.
Aaron Holloway’s goal in the first half proved to be the difference between the two sides, after Josh Morris saw his penalty saved by Shrewsbury goalkeeper Steve Arnold late on.
Speaking to iFollow Iron after the game, Wootton said: “It was a tough game. I thought we battled away throughout and we started well too. We then dropped off a bit, as did they and, all of sudden, they came into the game.
“In the second half, I think we turned up and did really well. It’s been difficult for us of late too with injuries and illnesses, but all the lads out there gave it a good go which is what the manager wanted us to do. We had our chances and our moment; however, it just wasn’t meant to be.”
Although, he feels as though it could have been a different story and the match could have been turned on its head early on in the first half.
Wootton’s former Iron teammate Luke Waterfall hacked down the striker after it looked like he had a clear route towards goal. However, referee Neil Hair, decided against giving the red card after consulting with his assistant and awarding a foul against the striker for an adjudged push in the back earlier on in that same play.
Speaking about that incident, Wootton said: “It should have gone the other way. I was clear and through on goal and then Luke (Waterfall), my former teammate here at Scunthorpe, brought me down.
“It was a clear red card for me and it was definitely a game-changing moment, but it’s gone against us on this occasion, so we just had to get on with it in the end.”
Although, Wootton went on to praise the referee later on after he gave the Iron a penalty with just five minutes to go. Josh Morris stepped up to take the spot-kick, but Arnold guessed the right way to deny Scunthorpe the chance to take the tie to a replay.
Talking about what he saw of the penalty decision, the striker said: “The guy marking Novs (Lee Novak) was holding him back and to be fair to the referee there, not many would have given that, but it’s still a foul at the end of the day. It’s in the area and it’s a penalty.”
The 22-year-old feels that the luck was against them on this occasion and is disappointed that the Iron couldn’t get into the hat for the third round draw.
He added: “Everybody wants to get into the third round because that’s when the big clubs come into the competition. We wanted to be in the draw with the top Premier League sides, but we were unlucky and it’s just one of those things.”
Scunthorpe will now be looking to bounce back next Saturday as they are back in league action against Gillingham at Glanford Park, and Wootton is hoping that the home advantage can provide the lift that will see the Iron return to winning ways.
He went on to say: “It’s a home game and that’s a massive boost for us. The fans are always great and so, we’ll have them behind us, but we’ve just got to prepare in training and analyze everything and then we can give it a right good go.
“Everyone is working hard. We’ve just got to keep going. I thought that we played well and we battled and battled, giving it a really good go and unfortunately it just wasn’t meant to be.
“I think on Saturday, we’ve got to have a decent week training and give the game a good planning. There’s positions and places up for grabs and we’ve got to keep sticking together which is the most important thing. We’ve got a good set of lads and hopefully we can get the win.”