Jon Whitney bemoaned his side’s decision making after the Saddlers’ Checkatrade Trophy second-round exit at the hands of League One rivals Bury.
A Nicky Ajose double, either side of Erhun Oztumer’s tenth goal of the season, booked the Shakers’ place in the last 16 with a 2-1 win at the Banks’s Stadium.
And while satisfied with the performance, Whitney was disappointed to exit the competition.
“I’m disappointed with the result,” said the boss.
“The performance levels were similar to the previous four games and we’ve ended up winning three and losing two [of the last five].
“Ajose’s got that quality and his first goal was a really good strike.
“Our goal was equally a very good goal and I thought it was a fair 1-1 [at half-time] between two teams trying to play the right way.
“I thought the first 20 minutes of the second half was some of the best football we’ve played this year but then you get hit with a sucker-punch with the goal.
“The decision making leading up to it was disappointing and that’s what you get sometimes with a young team.
“Then we came away from what we were doing well. We tried to force it and individuals tried to be the one to change it.
“It wasn’t through lack of effort, but decision making is something we need to learn from.
“After the goal, we still needed to do what we do right because we’ll create an opportunity.
“The subs, for once, didn’t have the impact off the bench we were looking for. We went with the three up top but they camped in and made it difficult for us.”