Result so hard to take

TOM Adeyemi admitted he struggled to articulate just how deflated the Athletic dressing room was in the aftermath of the heartache inflicted by Chesterfield at Boundary Park last night.

Jack Lester’s late winner for the visitors came after a dominant home display which saw Paul Dickov’s side fail to hit the target despite 25 attempts on goal.

And Norwich City loanee Adeyemi was left to rue a missed opportunity to reach the final at Wembley.

He said: “It is hard to put into words how upset we all are. The chance to go to Wembley does not come along very often and we were so desperate to make it

happen, not just for ourselves but the supporters and everyone at the club.

“How we did not beat Chesterfield over the two legs I will never know. I don’t believe it has happened in football very often — a side creating so many chances yet scoring only once. It is unusual.

“From our point of view it is not good enough. Their goalkeeper was in good form and played well, but we seem to have said that too many times of late, so we should start looking at ourselves.

“It is so frustrating to go out of the competition when we were so close to getting to Wembley, but we must remember there is still a lot to play for this season.

“We have plenty of league games left and they are an opportunity to turn this into a successful season.

“Our performances are generally good. There is not a lot wrong but, as a team, we must improve our finishing.”

Meanwhile, Adeyemi was today awaiting news on his future at the club, with his loan deal set to expire.

He added: “I really hope something can get sorted as I would like to stay for the rest of the season.

“Fingers crossed the deal can be extended.”