New Blues boss Paul Jewell said it was great to be back in management but wasn’t so pleased to be talking about a defeat after his first match with Town ended in a 2-1 Millwall victory. The result leaves the Blues in 20th in the Championship.
Jewell said: "It’s great to be back as a manager but it’s not great to be giving a press conference having lost.”
The Liverpudian even seemed pleased to be reunited with Millwall's fans after his two years out of management: "It’s a tough place to come, lovely supporters behind the dug-out, I’ve missed that at Millwall!
"Kenny Jackett’s got something going here, they’ve got a goalscorer in the team and they are a good side, there’s no doubt about that. Every credit to Kenny and his team.”
Jewell was happier with some aspects of his side’s performance but less so with others: "We need to improve in all areas, but that’s not to say it’s all doom and gloom, the effort and the workrate is there, but we need a bit more nous and a bit more quality when we get in those certain areas.
"We’re panicking a little bit, and that comes when you’re losing games. I think that’s nine out of the last 11 and that’s what happens. We’ve got to try and overcome the fear factor of losing games.
"When we’re 1-0 up, instead of going 2-0 up maybe we’re just trying to hang on. I want to be a team which goes on the front foot and once they’re one up tries to go for the second goal.”
The new boss, who has been promised funds by owner Marcus Evans, says he’s inherited some decent players from Roy Keane but will look to make signings if he can: "We’re not in a great position at the moment, but we’ve got some good players. You could see today that they are lacking a little bit of confidence. I know they won on Wednesday but I think Wednesday was a bit of a one-off.
"They’re a bit anxious in certain areas, we need to try to get them to relax a little bit more and try and have a little bit more belief.
"I will be looking to strengthen the squad if at all possible. I think any player at any football club wants his manager to try and improve the team that he’s in. Whether we can do that, I don’t know. Like every manager, if I can bring in better than what I’ve got, I’ll try and do that.”
The former Wigan and Bradford manager isn't going to base his judgement of his new team simply on this week's two performances: "I think it’s important not to take too much out of Wednesday’s game and too much out of today’s game. You look at where we are in the league and we are where we are because of the way we’ve played.
"The players have given total effort, there’s no way anyone could say there’s a lack of effort because there certainly isn’t. We’re just lacking a little bit of confidence, a little bit of quality at vital times.
"They’re game-changing things. If we go in 1-0 up at half-time and it’s a different ball game. Them scoring just before half-time gives them a great lift, gives the crowd a lift and kicks us in the stomach a little bit.”
Jewell was also disappointed that Tamás Priskin didn't net a second of the afternoon after Jaime Peters's cross had hit the bar: "It would have been nice to have a two-goal cushion, but it wasn’t to be and we’re disappointed in the manner we conceded the goal.
"It’s obviously been a recurring theme, that’s why we’re in the position we are and we’ve got to pick up some results quickly.”
Jewell has no problem with the heated first half fall-out between Márton Fülöp and Mark Kennedy after the Irishman had reacted angrily to an error by the Hungarian keeper: "I think they’re both passionate guys. Márton’s made a mistake, but the best thing is that they shook hands seconds afterwards.
"That’s the way football is, that’s the way it used to be. You can fall out on the pitch, but in the right way. It shows that you care and you move on very quickly, there’s no problem.”
The new boss similarly felt there was little in a second half incident where he and Millwall goalscorer Steve Morison exchanged views: "I was trying to get big Gareth McAuley away from it, that’s all I was doing. Steve Morison must have thought I was trying to get involved with him, which I wasn’t.”