Tom Shaw believes City’s players and supporters deserved more from Tuesday night’s defeat at Watford.
The Imps produced a disciplined and committed performance at Vicarage Road, but were ultimately left empty-handed following a frustrating passage of play which led to Watford’s winner.
Shaw felt his side had done enough to earn a point against a talented Watford outfit and praised the determination shown throughout the contest.
He said: “We’ve come to a big club and produced a performance full of heart, effort and desire. It’s a really tough one to take because the result has been decided by a mistake.
“We’re gutted for the players and the fans. I thought the players’ effort and endeavour was incredible.
“This is a massive football club full of internationals. The lads have given everything, the supporters got right behind them and the result has been defined by an error.
“Of course, our quality can be better around the goal. There are things we can improve on and definitely talk about, but we deserved a point tonight in our opinion.
Shaw was particularly frustrated by the sequence of events leading to the winning goal, with a throw-in taken before the officials had indicated which team had been awarded possession.
He added: “People get throw-ins wrong and that’s fine, but the throw-in was taken before it had been awarded either way.
“We can’t complain about our lads’ reaction or switching off because nobody knew whose throw-in it was. The throw-in was taken and then the decision was given.
“We've lost a game on those grounds and a big mistake that’s cost us what would have been a massive point.”
Despite the disappointment, Shaw was encouraged by City’s defensive organisation and the way his players restricted Watford’s attacking threats.
He said: “Watford have got so much talent in their group and we spoiled their attacks over and over again.
“We made the pitch really small and wanted a low-scoring game. The game played out how we wanted it, on our terms for a big part of it.
“We’re really pleased with the out-of-possession stuff. Our transition was okay, but our quality in possession, especially around their goal, wasn’t at its best.
“There’s going to be days like that for every team in the Championship. All we can do is get back on the training ground, keep working on the players individually and collectively, and keep improving our threat around the goal.”
City were backed by a vocal travelling contingent throughout the evening, with Shaw quick to acknowledge their contribution.
He said: “They’re brilliant and it’s no surprise because they always are.
“We felt we got enough pressure around their goal and enough set-pieces to give them something to get behind, and they responded to that. They were fantastic.
“There’s a real feeling of frustration that we should have taken a point tonight. The players deserved it and the supporters deserved it. We feel a little bit hard done by.”
Attention now turns to Saturday’s trip to Queens Park Rangers. Shaw added: “QPR will be a tough test. They’ve got a unique style of play and their goalkeeper is like an outfield player, so we’ve got to be wary of their threats.
“We’ve already watched plenty of their games and we know we can hurt their backline. We feel we’ve got the tools to do that.
“We’ll attack every single game and give it everything we’ve got. Win, lose or draw, we’ll take our learnings and move on to the next fixture.
“This one will sting a little bit and it’ll be a quiet journey back up north, but by Thursday’s training session we’ll be fully focused on Queens Park Rangers.”
