We've been given a jolt

WE'VE been warning the lads for a while something like Saturday's defeat to Ware would happen, because we've been conceding some silly goals to be honest since just before Christmas.

We've said to the boys ' eventually you'll dig yourselves a hole you're now going to get out of and we've got to learn from our mistakes'.

We need to be on it every game, as we're to of the league and we're there to be shot down. And on Saturday, being totally honest and being totally frank we didn't deserve anything from the game. We got what we deserved and it hurts me to say it, but on the day we were out-fought, out-battled, out-played and we didn't deserve a thing from it.

I think it's given us a kick up the backside as well and sometimes in football you need that. It certainly wasn't down to complacency on our part. We drum it into the lads before the games and talk about complacency and we must guard against it because if you don't any side can beat any one on their day it is was proved on Saturday.

It's no good making excuses and we'll look at ourselves. The result was down to us, simple as that. All credit to Ware, they made it hard for us and they got the points.

You see it in football, but one swallow doesn't make a summer. One poor result doesn't make you a bad side. It happens at the highest level of football sometimes. We had 11 players on Saturday who just didn't perform to their capabilities and it happens. Saturday was our turn unfortunately.

The lads have had loads of praise this season. They've been different class for 99 percent of the season. Let's put thins into perspective. At the start of the season, in a new league if people had some at the start of February we'd have reached the first round of the FA Cup and be sitting on top of the league with games in hand and points on the board and you'd have only lost two games we'd have bitten their hands off.

It's one defeat in the last 17 games and what we said to the lads on Tuesday was that the sign of a good side is how you respond to a poor performance and result.

We had the ideal opportunity to bounce back against Tilbury in the 4th round of the Championship Manager cup on Tuesday and put things right.

And the boys did exactly what was expected of them and responded. I think it was a tough game. We were playing against the holders and they weren't going to relinquish their grip on the cup that easily. We knew they'd had a great result in the previous round away at Maidstone of the Premier Division and it was going to be a tough game.

But the lads were first class. They bounced back and matched Tilbury all over the park. Tilbury are a hard-working side, well-disciplined and well-organised and don't concede many goals. Our boys earned the right to beat them and play the way we wanted to play.

We ground out the result. All credit to the lads. It was really close first half, although we had opportunities to be fair, and it just didn't happen. We had great opportunities to go in at half-time a few goals ahead. We looked solid and were hard to break down and came out second-half and conceded a silly goal.

But credit to the lads, they stuck together. They didn't drop their heads, they didn't start arguing they just kept doing what they'd been doing in the first half and working hard. We said to the boys 'just keep doing what you did in the first half and it will come'. After a great move down the right hand side and some quick passing and football led to a great finish from Matty Nolan in the bottom corner.

We just kept pressing and a cracking second from Matty again, this time down the left-hand side and a one-two and he cut inside and spanked one bottom corner.

A really well-deserved, hard-earned victory and a great way to respond to Saturday. Now we've got to take that on and we need to put another run together now. What's done is done and for most of this season they've been different class. We've got to make sure we stick together and we've got a tough game at Harlow tomorrow.

We want to start another run and this is when trophies are won and lost. We're in a great position, we're doing well and so far, so good, but over the next few months it will determine who does win things. We're in a nice position, but we've really got to train hard and make sure we got to Harlow with the right attitude and guard against what happened Saturday happening again.

Any side can beat any one in this league and Saturday it happened to us. We've now got to make sure we capitalise on all the good work we've done up to now and capitalise on the position we're in.

The only thing we're looking forward to is the game at Harlow with another three points available. We've got make sure we go there, focus on ourselves and work hard and do the right things and do our best to get the points.

People are making progress, some quicker than others, but they're all making progress. Competition for places is good, is fierce, and when everyone's back we're going to have a lot of difficult decisions to make as management but what a lovely position to be in.