'Gutted' Wycombe Wanderers boss Gareth Ainsworth reacts as Hartlepool United look ahead to Lincoln City FA Cup clash

Gareth Ainsworth was left ‘gutted’ as Hartlepool United beat his League One Wycombe Wanderers side in the FA Cup first round replay.
Watch more of our videos on Shots! 
and live on Freeview channel 276
Visit Shots! now

Mark Cullen’s fifth goal in six starts was enough to secure Pools’ place in the second round of the competition on Tuesday evening.

Pools will now head to League One Lincoln City on December 4 in the second round of the competition.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Reacting to the defeat, Ainsworth said: "We've had chances and really there's little threat from them, just two shots that were worrying and one of them went in.

Gareth Ainsworth, manager of Wycombe Wanderers. (Photo by Alex Burstow/Getty Images)Gareth Ainsworth, manager of Wycombe Wanderers. (Photo by Alex Burstow/Getty Images)
Gareth Ainsworth, manager of Wycombe Wanderers. (Photo by Alex Burstow/Getty Images)

"That's the game sometimes. The only thing we can do now is focus on Bolton on Sunday.

"At some stage somebody is going to take a beating off us, these chances are going to go in. These opportunities that are coming will get scored.

"I'm gutted for the boys, they're an unbelievable bunch and I have total belief in them."

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

On the match, caretaker boss Antony Sweeney said: “It's what we asked for and what we thought we might need to get through. The lads, to a man, were absolutely fantastic.

“We rode our luck at times, probably too much for our liking but you don't come away from a place like this with a win and a clean sheet without riding your luck.

“We want more bodies into the box and the ball goes into the area and Culls is in the right area again and does well and continues his great run for us.

“You could go through the full team. It's not easy for 95-minutes of getting the ball loaded into the box, Wycombe are very good at what they do but we stood up to it brilliantly.”

A message from the Football Clubs Editor

Our aim is to provide you with the best, most up-to-date and most informative Hartlepool United coverage 365 days a year.

This depth of coverage costs, so to help us maintain the high-quality reporting that you are used to, please consider taking out a subscription to our new sports-only package here.

Your support is much appreciated. Richard Mennear, Football Clubs Editor