Source: Team_Talk
Pressley angered by Aberdeen tactics
Falkirk manager Steven Pressley hit out at Aberdeen's "spoiling tactics" following their 1-0 defeat to Aberdeen at Pittodrie.[LNB] Steven MacLean's clinical strike after 12 minutes was enough to give the Dons victory against a below-par Falkirk who are now a point behind St Mirren and Kilmarnock at the foot of the SPL.[LNB]After the match Pressley accused Aberdeen of continuously wasting time during a scrappy 90 minutes at Pittodrie.[LNB]He said: "I'm not disappointed with the performance and I thought in the second half we dominated the game. I don't think we created as many opportunities as we have in recent weeks but in terms of application I couldn't fault the players.[LNB]"I was angry with the spoiling tactics. Aberdeen scored early on and then proceeded to spoil the game and waste time at any given opportunity by kicking the ball away or by standing in front of the ball. That enraged me and I spoke to the referee about it a number of times in the first half and again in the second half."[LNB]The Bairns boss felt referee Brian Winter should have done more to keep the game flowing.[LNB]He added: "I think the referee has to be strong on that one. The rules clearly indicate that kicking the ball away is a booking as is standing over the ball when a team tries to take a free kick. I needed him to be strong as we wanted to play at a tempo that Aberdeen couldn't deal with.[LNB]"I was at a game on Tuesday night where there was a similar type of performance from one team and there was seven minutes of added time at the end of it but today there were only three minutes. We came here to play football and win the game but we played against a team that wanted to spoil and that angers me."[LNB]However Aberdeen boss Mark McGhee said he had not not instructed his players to slow the game down.[LNB]"I think the only spoiling tactics were that we got one more goal than them," he said.[LNB]"There was nothing said in the dressing room about spoiling tactics and I didn't see that. I forgive him for that because this was a very important match for them. In the same situation their players would take a second longer and walk a bit slower. That is the game we are in and there is no way that they wouldn't have done the same thing.[LNB]"We certainly didn't give them any instructions to do that. However I did have to tell Davide Grassi to cool his jets when he was sprinting to take a throw-in when we were one up with five minutes to go and we were under a little bit of pressure. However there were certainly no tactics in trying to spoil."[LNB]The win means the Dons have a nine-point cushion over bottom side Falkirk and are virtually guaranteed survival.[LNB]McGhee added: "My overwhelming emotion is relief. We were clearly in a scrap and today we have scrapped and got a result from a game that was a difficult one for both teams."
