McKenna: My lowest point so far
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ACADEMY boss Tom McKenna has admitted he has had to do some soul-searching following a thumping 4-0 defeat away to Forres Mechanics.
A lacklustre performance saw an out-of-sorts Academy overrun by the Can-Cans who cruised to an easy victory with Stuart Soane banging in a hat-trick and Callum Howarth also on target.
The last of the goals went in with 38 minutes of the game left and Wick were maybe fortunate that Forres appeared to take their foot off the gas.
It comes off the back of another 4-0 loss days earlier when Academy crashed out of the North of Scotland Cup to Brora. It’s the first time they’ve lost two successive games by a four-goal margin or more since April 2006.
McKenna has been urging his players to show some consistency. While he’s not considering his own position at the club, he admits the Forres loss is so far his lowest point during his spell with the club.
He said: “Saturday was very disappointing. To be on the end of successive 4-0 defeats is very difficult to take.
“The start we’ve made to the season has been inconsistent and, given what happened at Forres, this is the most trying time for me since I’ve been at the club.
“The first 25 minutes were pretty even but then they got the opening goal and you could tell from the body language that ours lads’ morale seemed to go down.
“We went in at half-time 2-0 down and words were said to the lads. Then, instead of an improved performance, we concede a third two minutes after the restart.
“I spent the last couple of days doing some soul-searching and looking for answers. It would be wrong for me to walk away but I’ve never had a time like this.
“I’ve just got to find something within myself to get us out of this spell.”
Wick face Clach at Harmsworth Park tonight (8pm kick-off) and the pressure is on both teams to get a result.
McKenna added: “I gave the lads Monday night off from training as I felt they looked a bit tired during last week’s games. Hopefully they’ll be fresh when the Clach game comes around.
“Clach will be looking to bounce back themselves after a bad result. However, we’re at home and it’s a good opportunity for us to get back on the rails.”
