8:50am Monday 6th September 2010
SUPERSUB Jon-Paul Pittman changed the game again for Wycombe Wanderers but this time his intervention wasn't enough to send Blues home from Accrington happy.
The Chairboys looked set for maximum points when Pittman's speedy break and then even quicker-thinking throw-in helped set Matt Bloomfield up to put Wanderers ahead.
But Wanderers failed to see the game out and gifted Stanley an unlikely equaliser in the fourth minute of stoppage time, when all they had to do was keep the ball where they had it by the Accrington corner flag.
They didn't manage that, then missed two opportunities to clear their lines and before they knew it Rory Boulding had stuffed the equaliser into their net with barely enough time left for the game to restart.
Pittman said: “That is one of the hardest results we've had to take. The game was in the bag and we've thrown it away.
“We are all really devastated. It was a professional performance up until the final minute when we were anything but professional. We tried to be too clever in the wrong area and it has cost us.
“We have got to learn from this. It cannot happen again because if it does we won't be where we want to be.
“We gifted that point to them, they didn't earn it and it is really hard to stomach.
“We had been solid throughout the game but it counts for nothing when you throw it away like we did.”
Earlier Pittman's quick-thinking had put Wycombe in the driving seat.
He led the 65th minute charge downfield and when he was tackled and the ball went into touch he quickly put Wycombe back on the attack with a throw in which set up Kevin Betsy, who in turn set up scorer Bloomfield.
Pittman said: “I knew I could keep the attack going. Just because the ball had gone out of play it didn't mean the attack had to stop. It was instinctive and it should have set the tone for the rest of the game.
“Everyone in the dressing room is disappointed and we know we can't let these mistakes happen again.
“We conceded a late equaliser in the previous game at Northampton and we still haven't learned how to see a game out.
“We have got to learn from it and learn fast.
“Before the game we might have been happy to take a point but not the way it has worked out.
“It is going to be a long ride home. We will talk about it, get everything out in the air and then move forward.”
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