Gateshead player-boss gives his verdict on FA Cup loss to Charlton

Gateshead player-manager Mike Williamson was proud of his side’s efforts in last night’s 2-0 defeat to Charlton Athletic in the FA Cup second round.

The Addicks avoided an upset as they beat the National League North side 2-0 on Friday evening with Jayden Stockley scoring both goals.

But the non-league side missed many big opportunities to make the game a lot tighter.

“Yeah, I think so,” said Williamson when asked if his side missed opportunities. “The lads are very disappointed in there. But when all is said and done, I’m immensely proud. We didn’t come away from our fundamentals and our process, and we kept going. It’s what we’ve come to see with these boys, the endeavour and never-give-up attitude.

“We just fell short. Listen, the boys have been fantastic all season and we’ve been scoring left, right and centre.

“I said to the lads: ‘You’ve come in disappointed feeling as though you should have got something out of the game against a massive club’.

“That’s got to give us enormous confidence to go on, and we’ve got a big game on Tuesday against York. It’s got to give us confidence to keep pushing, but we know ultimately it’s about us. It just reinforces the process.”

PICTURE: KYLE ANDREWS