Burnley boss Scott Parker looks dejected at the final whistle after Burnley were beaten by Mansfield Town
Burnley boss Scott Parker looks dejected at the final whistle after Burnley were beaten by Mansfield Town
SCOTT Parker admitted the ‘noise’ will be back on him following Burnley’s shock FA Cup exit to Mansfield Town - but he defended his decision to make nine changes for the fourth round tie.
The Clarets were looking to build on morale-boosting win against Crystal Palace last Wednesday - which ended a run of 16 Premier League games without a win - instead they were on the wrong side of a cup upset as the Stags won 2-1 at Turf Moor.
“I don’t think the changes were the issue,” said Parker.
“The game should be practically out of sight first half, we missed glorious opportunities. Second half, really poor. We started poor, gave them something to hold on to and from that point never really affected anything. Just a really poor result.”
The heat will be back on Parker, while chairman Alan Pace used his programme notes to address the anger caused by his recent comments about the attitude of some Burnley fans.
“When you come off the back of a result that we had in midweek, you probably dampen the noise around the place a little bit,” added Parker.
“You come into this game wanting to get a result and keep that momentum and we’ve just applied that noise even more now, 10 fold, and rightly so.”
The much-changed Clarets led at the break thanks to Josh Laurent’s goal but second half goals from Rhys Oates and a superb Louis Reed free kick saw Nigel Clough’s side book their place in the fifth round.
“It’s bitterly disappointing,” added Parker.
“We wasted so many big chances in the first half, massive opportunities.
“And then the longer it stays at only 1-0, there’s always a chance for the opposition, and they made the most of a really below-par second half display from us.
“We were really edgy when they equalised and then went behind, but even then we had some great chances to get ourselves level.
“It just wasn’t to be and that’s hugely disappointing.”
He added: “I think the effort was there from the boys, but we lacked the quality when we needed it with the glorious chances we squandered.
“Just like we were praised on Wednesday for a good performance at Palace, today there’ll be criticism because of the way we played, in particular in the second half, and the result.
“We’re hugely disappointed because we saw this as a huge opportunity to build on Wednesday’s win, and get some momentum going.
“Ultimately we’ve fallen short.”
Burnley will now prepare for their return to Premier League action when they make the trip to Stamford Bridge to face Chelsea on Saturday.