PAUL Tisdale questioned whether it was possible for lower league clubs to nurture young talent if they are then subjected to the kind of tactics employed by League Two cloggers like AFC Wimbledon on Saturday.
The Exeter City manager saw 18-year-old starlet Matt Grimes helped from the field with a nasty ankle injury after an X-rated, two-footed lunging tackle from Dons midfielder Sammy Moore during the Grecians' 2-1 defeat at Kingsmeadow.
Grimes left the stadium in a cast and on crutches before heading off for an X-ray back in Exeter on Sunday, but the incident incensed Tisdale, who was none to happy that Moore escaped with just a yellow card for his horror challenge.
'There is no wonder we can't produce footballers in this country when you have lower league football that is like a rugby match,' an unhappy Tisdale said.
'Referees need to know where the line is drawn. There was no surprise Matt Grimes got whacked on 40 or 45 minutes, whenever it was. You could see it coming and there was no surprise there at all. It was that type of game.
'I thought it was a penalty on Tom Nichols as well and Tom is convinced it was a penalty, but it wasn't given so we don't dwell on it.'
Tisdale added: 'Matt was left on crutches and has to go to hospital for an X-ray. The player knew exactly what he was doing and it was a red card. No doubt.
'Again, what chance do we have of producing footballers? There was intent there, he (Sammy Moore) knew what he was doing. But more to the point, it was coming.
'It took 45 minutes to happen, but the line was edging further and further away from where it should have been. The line (of the officials) should have been 'we will stop that type of football' but it crept through the game.
'I said to the linesman that it was inevitable something was going to happen sooner or later. It is the referee's decision whether to give a red or yellow card and it will be argued if it was two footed and off the floor or whatever. But he knew what he was doing. Hopefully it will just be game over for Matt and not his season over.
'He is one of our best players at the moment - if not our best player - and the game should have been more tightly refereed. But that was never going to happen.
'It was inevitable it would happen at some point, they would leave their feet in when clearing the ball (Luke Moore was booked for a bad tackle from behind as Danny Coles cleared during the first half) but we don't expect any better.'
On the game itself, Tisdale said: 'I like the way we played and the intensity and the desire to win of the players. 'They showed bundles of it, but at times, it was like a game of rugby today.
'There wasn't much football played and I am very proud of the way the players competed and put themselves about. But we conceded two poor goals and we lost the game.
'We had chances to win it, or at least to get that leading goal, especially at 1-1, but we failed to do it and we conceded from an attack of ours and it's very disappointing.
'I liked the way we played, but it is about the result and that's not what we needed today.
'It's a familiar story, but we just have to keep pushing those players, keep believing in ourselves and working hard. It's all cliche's, but we have to keep at it.
'I didn't dislike us today, but that is no good because we keep losing games. We will see who is fit and go again (against Oxford) on Tuesday.'
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