Steve Cooper | It's a hard one to take

Steve Cooper said Swansea City’s narrow defeat to Cardiff City was a hard one to take as the hosts were unable to capitalise on their dominance of territory and possession.

The hosts had 74 per cent possession and 23 shots on goal, but the derby was ultimately settled by Aden Flint’s early header for the visitors.

Andre Ayew hit the post from a Connor Roberts corner, while Morgan Whittaker was denied by Dillon Phillips and fired wide of the far post late on.

And head coach Cooper could not hide his disappointment at being unable to turn their dominance into at least one goal.

“The only way to reflect on it is as a massive disappointment because this is a massive game for everyone, we know that,” he said.

“We’ve come out on the wrong end of it and, with the way it has happened, it is hard to get our heads around.

“We have conceded off a long throw, which we knew was coming, and – not through any lack of trying - it has fallen to Flint.

“It has been all us for the rest of the game. We have played some brilliant football, created a load of chances and dominated every statistic you could want to, apart from the one that matters most, and that’s the scoreline.

“So, it’s a tough one to take. It’s a bit raw at the moment because we know it’s a big game and we wanted to do well in it.”