GARY Rowett said that Millwall ‘didn’t turn up’ as they were beaten 2-1 by relegation-threatened Wigan Athletic at the DW Stadium.
The Lions had put in impressive performances against Hull City and Birmingham City but lost both games. However, they were second best in every aspect against the Latics this afternoon and deserved to leave Greater Manchester empty-handed.
Rowett explained that his side’s performance was uncharacteristic of what they have shown lately, stressing that things need to improve if they are to secure a top-six finish at the end of the season.
“I just said to the players in there, we played like we weren’t desperate to win the game and get into the top six, we played like we were scared of dropping out of the top six. There’s a big difference,” he said after the game.
“There’s obviously disappointment. You need your big players to step up in games like this. The team has been outstanding all season, the team has worked incredibly hard all season, I think we’ve given some really good performances all season.
“Recently, we haven’t gotten the results that we want, but the performances have been quite good. Today, the performance was poor. We didn’t show up, we kept turning the ball over all the time, we showed a real lack of bravery all of the time.
“I won’t question the players’ character at all but you’ve got to step up in moments like this. The reality is that we’ve not turned up today and performed.
“I feel sorry for our fans because they turned up in good voice and good spirit. I feel sorry for all the players in there because we worked so hard, but the fact of the matter is that, at this stage of the season, you have to put big performances in.
“The facts of the matter are, at this stage of the season, you need to put big performances in. If you play with fear, you’re not going to do that, and we didn’t do that today at all. From the first minute, we didn’t do it.”
Photo: Millwall FC