Last updated at 11:36, Monday, 03 September 2012

GREG Abbott today insisted it was wrong to single Adam Collin out for blame after the keeper’s latest gaffe cost Carlisle United at MK Dons.

Title
Author
Copyright

Description

The manager said responsibility for the Blues’ 2-0 defeat should be shared and maintained that other players were below-par.

The spotlight is back on Collin after his weak kick allowed the Dons to take a 12th-minute lead through former Manchester United man Luke Chadwick.

The mistake followed an earlier blunder at Stevenage on the opening day of the League One season.

But, asked whether the Cumbrian keeper’s place could now be in jeopardy, Blues boss Abbott said: “I think you’ve got to look at it from a balanced point of view. Did he make any good saves? Did he keep us in the game at times? Yes.

“He has made a mistake, it’s an area of his game we want him to improve and he’ll work desperately hard at it. But I’d never, as a manager, single one person out. Other players made mistakes, they were just ones that didn’t cause us as much problems as that one.

“He knows he has to stop making these mistakes because they can take some coming back from at places like MK Dons.”

Carlisle have now conceded eight goals from their opening four games, with only bottom side Scunthorpe shipping more since the start of the campaign. United’s second league defeat of the season was sealed by Ryan Lowe despite Abbott handing a second-half debut to new loan signing Michael O’Halloran. The Bolton forward was unable to inspire a comeback and left Abbott hoping for an improvement from his side against Preston in tomorrow’s Johnstone’s Paint Trophy clash.

“We have got to have belief in the group,” said Abbott, who hinted he would be looking to make more signings when the emergency loan window re-opens this weekend.

“Michael probably didn’t contribute as much in his 20 minutes as we would like but he only trained with us for an hour on Friday and has probably not played at this intensity for a while.

“He has got pace and he is good around his feet and on another day you will see a different player.”

MK Dons manager Karl Robinson said it had been a “comfortable” victory.

“That is a good Carlisle side,” he said. “I thought for 20 minutes at the start of the second-half Carlisle were excellent and really put us up against the wall.

“Once we got to grips with them we went from strength to strength.”

First published at 11:27, Monday, 03 September 2012
Published by http://www.newsandstar.co.uk