When you know your manager is under pressure given recent results, Scott Robertson was needlessly sent off for two yellow cards on the night, and he will now miss the Magpies away trip to Accrington Stanley at the weekend.
It’s yet another frustrating loss, having seen the 22-year-old start life well at Meadow Lane, but showing that inexperience at helping his team and knowing when to control your emotions during a tightly battled game, will ultimately come with match practice and sharpness.
The midfielder will be blamed for the Magpies’ capitulation in five second half minutes at the Checkatrade.com Stadium, but it was difficult to see any other result given the match statistics on the night.
Notts are practically the team with the most goals conceded this season, while being the second-highest scoring team in the league, and they could have given up more if Sam Slocombe hadn’t put on a standout performance. The 35-year-old put in one of his best performances for the Magpies that evening with 12 saves.
The majority of Maynard’s team’s 31 shots on goal came when they had 11 men on the pitch. They could not stop Crawley, and after Robertson’s dismissal was confirmed, the sequence of events would inevitably continue, leading to the home team’s eventual goal.
But the removal of the Scottish midfielder also forced the Notts coach to make a defensive substitution in an attempt to hold onto the advantage. He took the place of Charlie Colkett and Tobi Adebayo, two of his greatest offensive options, in favour of Jodi Jones and Dan Crowley. Maynard’s strategy of starting players who give you everything while out of possession makes sense.
However, neither of these players had made a consistent appearance. Since Maynard’s arrival, Adebayo has been limited to substitute appearances, playing just one minute in a 5-5 tie with Grimsby Town, while Colkett has not yet played a minute since arriving from Crewe Alexandra.
The deeper issues with the current Meadow Lane playing squad will be overshadowed by the red card. It will be interesting to see if Maynard is given the summer to address those issues, or if the club’s decline in League Two could cause his first full-time managerial stint to end sooner than expected.
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