Graeme Jones says Matty Pearson’s disallowed goal against Leeds was ‘not correct’ but says he can’t talk too much about the decision for fear of getting find.
Luton had just equalised through James Collins’ header and had started to build some momentum when the centre half found the net, but the linesman’s flag went up late, with the goalscorer fully committed to his celebration.
However, replays have shown that Pearson was not offside. Immediately after the match Jones’ response was measured, admitting that was one of three crucial decisions that didn’t go Luton’s way.
But speaking ahead of the visit of Charlton tonight, the manager added: “If I stand up and say something, what’s going to happen? I’m going to get fined. That’s what happens if I mention the officials.
“It’s not correct. You can’t gamble on something like that. We scored a legitimate goal that put us 2-1 up and in the ascendancy. That’s where we are at the minute.
“That’s why we have to earn everything we get. Don’t rely on the referee, don’t rely on the linesman or anybody else, just our performance, so I’d rather focus on that.”
In his preparation for the visit of the Addicks, Jones is also keen to take the positives out of matching Leeds until the final minute and he said: “I’ve challenged the players to the same level of performance, so I want that from them first and foremost and if we get that we’ll get a result.
“It’s about standards. No two games are the same in the Championship, so the challenge is to repeat what we did at the weekend in every area and, if we do that, we’ll get a result.”
Luton are on a five game losing run, which has left them one place above the Championship relegation spots by virtue of goal difference.
This campaign has been a stark contrast to Town’s last two where they won back-to-back promotions to reach the second tier for the first time in 12 years.
Asked if is a different challenge for his players to go from winning every week to their current run of results, Jones said: “Of course it is. We don’t want it to be permanent, but it’s unusual.
“When you’ve been in a winning football club, which we have, you get used to that. It’s easy when you’re winning. You don’t find out about people’s personalities or people’s character or anything. When you’re getting beaten, you do.
“I’m not here not to be realistic. Everybody’s together here, from top to bottom.
“We need to relish the challenge, go and be courageous, like we were on Saturday, give everything we’ve got and if we do, we’ll get something from the game.”
