Dale were beaten 3-2 at the Mornflake Stadium, having rallied from three goals down.
The Head Coach was pleased with the display overall, but rued the goals conceded.
“I thought we started the game incredibly well” commented Watson. “We had a lot of control and were causing a lot of problems.
“I’m happy with so much of the performance, but the frustrating thing is the goals that we concede – one from their set piece and two actually come from our corners as well.
We find ourselves 3-0 down and it’s not like they’ve carved us open; it’s from our set pieces, which is really frustrating.
“We spoke previously about their transition being their strength, and we had to be really aware in those moments. That’s the biggest frustration for me because a lot of the performance was top.
“We worked the ball really well and got into some unbelievable positions in the first half with Hayesy [Cian Hayes].
“At half-time, I didn’t feel like we deserved to be 2-0 down. The most pleasing thing is that we kept on going. We just ran out of time in the end.
“The boys were doing everything they could to try and get something from the game. You’re going to lose games in football, but it’s about how you lose games, and we went out fighting.”
Watson also gave an injury update on Nils Ramming, with the goalkeeper missing the game and now on the treatment table for a prolonged period.
“Nils has suffered a tear in his thigh, which is really tough. He’s going to be out for ten weeks.
“It’s a hard one because he’s an exceptional goalkeeper and has such a high ceiling.
“To have him in goal was a real strength, but we’re fortunate that we have another exceptional goalkeeper in Sam [Waller] as our number two. He came in and was really good. He believes in himself.
“We’re gutted for Nils, but lucky that we have Sam in the group. We have Spavo [Jake Spaven] as well, who has been amazing since he came. We’ve got a really strong goalkeeper group who will support each other to make sure everyone is in a good place to go into the games.”
Watch the full interview with Watson via our official YouTube channel below.
