LOOKING back at Saturday's defeat at Southend, I can't fault the lads for effort. It was there for all to see for the 75 minutes that we were down to ten men and we created a couple of decent chances. But in that situation you have to take the opportunities that come your way.

It's a case of picking ourselves up and moving onto the next game. The players are disappointed, but that won't last too long as we have an immediate opportunity to launch another positive run of results.

The sign of a good side is how you bounce back from a defeat. Tonight we face a Crewe Alexandra outfit that has seen an upturn in results following the appointment of Gudjon Thordarson.

As we have found in recent weeks, picking up positive results breeds confidence and it has all the ingredients to be a keenly-contested encounter this evening.

I would like to praise those supporters who gave us excellent backing at our last two away games. Your dedication to the cause is much appreciated by myself and the players and I hope to hear you all in good voice from the very first whistle this evening.

CHRIS HUTCHINGS