Argyle picked up a point at Home Park on Sunday afternoon against AFC Wimbledon but, for many, it hurt more than normal.
The game ended 1-1, but only because of a headed goal in the final minutes of the game by former Pilgrim Ellie Dorey, after Phoebie Poole had put the Greens ahead in the first half, converting from the penalty spot.
Head Coach Marie Hourihan was frustrated with the final result, but also praised her side for a positive performance and remaining unbeaten at the Theatre of Greens through the opening stages of the season.
“We dominated the game and created enough opportunities to probably win two games,” Hourihan told Argyle TV. “We’ve got a point, but the overriding feeling is disappointment because we dominated in so many areas. I think they only got the ball into our box twice, but credit to Wimbledon because, from one free-kick opportunity, they were clinical. That’s just the theme of the day for us.
“We’ve got to be more ruthless. We've had three or four clear-cut opportunities that should be goals, and if we score, then we’re two or three goals up, and it's a very different picture. However, it is a point on the board. We have seven points from four games, so must take that positive.
“We knew Wimbledon were going to come here and play very physical, certainly in the central areas. They were looking to play in transition, so we knew that we had to be prepared for that, which I thought we did really well - especially in the first 20 minutes. I think that's the best we’ve started a game this season, so there are positives to take, but as you can imagine, it's a real sucker punch conceding in the 89th minute. We'll reflect on it.
“We've spoken a lot about how we want to dominate the ball, but equally, when we lose the ball, we want to be really aggressive to win it back and be organised to do it in a way that gives us good shape and structure. For the vast majority of today, we were good at that, but it's come down to a set play, and we've not picked up the player. It was a good finish, but we've got to take that on the chin and be better in those situations.
“Overall, in terms of where we've come from, we've made massive steps, but today's always going to hurt because of the nature of when the equaliser went in. We need to refocus and make sure that we prepare right for Lewes next weekend.”
