"I wanted to give everybody in the squad an opportunity but a lot of people didn't do themselves any credit with their first half performance, that's for sure.
"I said to them at half-time - "talk about losing fans before the season's even kicked off! "A lot of decisions I was mulling over have been made quite simple tonight.
"Managers get the sack after performances like that. "But if I'm going to be judged on pre-season matches then sack me now - start up petitions in the local newspaper and radio station and get me out."
He added: "I'll be judged on what we do in 46 league games. "I share the fans frustration but let's not have any false ideas about who we are,what we are and where we should be. This is going to be a very tough season. We've seen a lot of Championship clubs spend a lot of money to improve their squads dramatically while we've have had to make do. We finished sixth from bottom last season and the majority of that squad is still here. The club has had to endure an awful lot - three years ago it was £40m in debt and I can't go to the Board to ask for money that's not there. The one thing that club needs is stability and hopefully I'm the man to give them that stability."