Smith hails beaten Bucks

Boss Rob Smith brushed off the disappointment of AFC Telford United’s second consecutive defeat to hail an “awesome” second half performance.

The Bucks went down 2-0 at Harrogate last night, a result that drops them to ninth in the Blue Square North.

But they at least came away with some credit, having forced the Yorkshire side to weather a sustained second half assault.

Striker Terry Fearns spurned two clear opportunities while the woodwork also came to the hosts’ rescue on two occasions.

“I thought that was the best we’ve played by a country mile,” said Smith. “If there was a God out there last night we’d have definitely got something out of that game.”We did everything but score and it was an awesome second half performance. I can’t ask for any more than that.

“I can’t legislate for Fearnsy missing a header or for hitting the post twice.

“I felt as if we were second best in the first half, but that second half can only give us positives.

“The negative is that we’ve come away without any points, but we’re only six points off the leaders and, if we can continue from that, then things will kick into place.”

It had been a different story in the first half, when Harrogate had been the side in the ascendancy.

Smith had made four changes to the side that lost at Droylsden on Saturday - with Simon Forsdick making his first start of the season and Indy Khela returning after his shoulder injury.

Khela had a mixed evening, with Smith admitting: “In the first half he slipped over three times and one of those gave them a goal. What he was wearing I don’t know, but they looked like slippers to me.

“I thought he had a good game apart from that. There was a lot of togetherness and I said to the lads - we’ve got to carry that second half into the first half on Saturday.”