BURY captain Steven Schumacher refused to condemn Stevenage for their functional but effective style of play in the wake of his side’s 2-1 home defeat at the weekend.

The 27-year-old midfielder gave Graham Westley’s men some grudging praise for the way they put their abrasive game plan into effect at Gigg Lane.

“It was a hard game to play in,” said Schumacher.

“It was what we expected – we had two tough games against them last season, so we weren’t surprised.

“We played some good stuff and we controlled the game, but we never really threatened them in their box.

“They had a game plan, and went man-for-man against us. When we had the ball, they dropped deep and stopped us from getting in behind them.

“We’ve been quite good at getting in the box, but we never really did it and we didn’t threaten enough.

“They got a bit of a scrappy goal, and that’s all they were looking for.

“We still tried to pass the ball and didn’t resort to launching it, but it just wasn’t our day.

“They’re horrible to play against, but that’s their strength. What they do, they do pretty well.

“They’re picking up results in League One having got promoted from the Conference into League Two.

“Stevenage are still doing the same things, so that’s credit to them.

“As a fan I wouldn’t like to watch that every week, but, if it gets them results, I’m sure their fans will be happy.”