ELLIOTT Moore admits he made the wrong call when he slid in and conceded a penalty during Oxford United’s heavy defeat at home to Middlesbrough.

The U’s were leading 1-0 following Greg Leigh’s opener, but on the wet Grenoble Road surface, Moore went to ground and took out Ben Doak close to the byline.

Emmanuel Latte Lath converted the spot kick, and Boro scored twice more before the end of the first half to put themselves in a commanding position at the break.

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United skipper Moore said: “I made the decision to go in, and the referee made the decision that it was a penalty.

“There were a few decisions that didn’t go our way, which could’ve impacted the game, but I hold my hands up for the penalty.

“It was my decision. I went in for it and it was a penalty. I hold my hands up for that.”

He added: “Our job is to keep the ball out of the back of the net, and we didn’t do it as a defence and as a team.

“It’s about putting that right and making sure we stick together and stay together during the games and during the tough spells.”

On the match itself, Moore said: “They were a good side, they played very well, but there are a lot of things we could’ve done better.

“It was a very tough one and something for us to really analyse and look at, and we need to make sure we do better.

“I thought we did well in the first 20 minutes, and I thought we coped with it. After that, they got back in the game with a penalty, and then they came on top of us.

“We didn’t do what we were good at. We didn’t keep the ball well, we didn’t put them under pressure, and they got back in the game.

“It’s just an afternoon we need to look back on and look at the things we can do a lot better.

“That’s the first time someone’s turned us over. It’s a horrible feeling, but we know we can bounce back.

“We know we can stay in the games, and we know we can win against the bigger teams.

“These things are going to happen, and it’s about making sure that we get it out of our heads and do the things we need to do.”

Moore was booked after conceding the penalty, and was substituted early in the second half.

He said: “I knew that with the yellow card at half-time it was a risk they’d play on it, so I was expecting it.

“It’s part and parcel of football. We need to make those substitutions and that’s absolutely fine.

“I take it on the chin if I need to be substituted, then so be it. Whatever needs to be done to help the team. I don’t take things like that personally.”