Stevenage manager pleased with wide men Morais and Freeman

Gary Smith says his side should have beaten Peterborough United on Saturday after a good second half display.

Greg Tansey put Stevenage ahead in the game but Darius Charles’ wayward pass allowed Lee Tomlin to equalise five minutes from time.

For Boro both Luke Freeman and new signing Filipe Morais impressed, and Smith said his side would use his wide men to good effect this season.

“It’s as close to a league game as we’re going to get,” Smith said afterwards.

“I thought Peterborough played some very good football in the opening stages. They made us work hard, they tested our defensive resolve, there were some big questions that we needed to try and answer.

“Early on, Darren [Ferguson, the Peterborough manager] will probably feel aggrieved that they didn’t score, but they didn’t and that gave us the opportunity to try and get ourselves back in the game and claw our way back into the football match which we did. The second period we played much better football, we scored our goal and should have ended up winning the game.

“When you try and build up to a season, especially with all the additions we’ve had, the fatigue factor sets in at certain points in the game. I’ve asked a lot from these guys already in terms of what we want from possession, how we’re going to build pressure and [I’ve been] leaning on certain individuals to be creative and sometimes it doesn’t come together.

“The first half looked a little fragmented but the second period I thought we were much better. The game flowed for us a lot more and when you score it boosts people’s confidence a little bit.”

Speaking about Freeman and Morais, Smith added: “Both of those guys are very talented boys and we’re going to lean on them an awful lot when the season starts to be that creative spark for us.

“I think you can see in Greg Tansey that there is a real forward edge to his game and [it was] a terrific goal. When Lucas [Akins, new signing] came on you can see that out wide he’s going to isolate players. He’s a different type of player. He’s very physical; he’ll roll individuals and use his body weight.

“Most importantly of all we have to try to make sure there’s a cutting edge to the group. The possession’s much, much better but it’s futile if you don’t get a cutting edge to your group and don’t create chances.”