Reaction: Hoedt On Late Southampton Defeat

Wesley Hoedt spoke to watfordfc.com after the Hornets fell to a 3-2 defeat away at Southampton in the Sky Bet Championship.

The Saints raced in a two-goal lead, but the Golden Boys bounced back to draw level thanks to strikes in each half from Ryan Porteous and Ismaël Koné.

However, Flynn Downes scored in the ninth minute of stoppage time to hand all three points to the home side.

Read what Hoedt had to say below...

We needed to calm down a bit because that was definitely not fair, and not how it should be but unfortunately people make errors, and human beings make errors, and I think that is what happened today.

We started really bad in the first 20 minutes, in which they went up 2-0, and then I think we dug in and stayed in the game, and then in the second half I thought we were the better team and we deserved for sure a point, and we made the equaliser, and then stuff happens that I’ve never seen on a football pitch.

They will have to have a look at it because first of all I saw a clear red card, with one of their guys hitting Ryan Porteous out of nothing. I don’t know what the ref was thinking there but I think that is a very bad decision in my opinion, and that was the first one.

Then the second one, they go on and play nine minutes extra time in which the seven minutes should have been finished, and then the third one it was a clear handball, I think everyone can see, and he didn’t see.

It is crazy, it is unbelievable, but it is football. I think the only thing we can have a look at, what Clevs [Tom Cleverley] said as well, the first 20 minutes we were not on it.

The willingness is there but the quality was just lacking today. With a lot of willingness we equalised and we came back into the game, so to have it taken away in this manner is really painful, and I hope that they look into it because this cannot happen again.

Looking forward, especially for the last few games and next season as well, we need to make sure that we play with quality as well.

Of course willingness and the fighting spirit was there, I think that is the bare minimum. For me it is very painful in the end because I think we deserved at least a point.

I think we switched on too late, if not we wouldn’t be on 52 points, but it is what it is. We look at the positive sides of this game; I think that was the willingness and the fighting spirit to fight for the badge and fight for your teammates, even though quality-wise we were not on point but we need to take the positives.

I think Clevs is doing amazing, he is doing a very great job and we all want him to succeed so that’s a big positive as well. Let’s now finish the season with the last three games and we will see what happens.

They [the fans] have been great all season and we are really thankful for them, and for them it is painful as well, to see us concede in the 99th minute when there was only seven minutes of extra time.