McDermott Has Time To Reflect On Magpies Defeat

The Reds produced a below par performance which lacked bite and conviction as Chorley ran out comfortable winners in the end, Alfreton rarely threatened and looked off the pace of recent excellent home displays.

McDermott told the club`s press office Amar Sharma: "We were beaten by the better team last weekend, they've done their job really well and I said to the lads we have to do our jobs in both ends of the pitch, creating things in the final third and we have to keep clean sheets against the top sides. We wanted to play high tempo, move it well; but we lacked that.

"I thought we started well, there was nothing in the game between the two sides, it was tight. The first 10/15 minutes we were in the game and I felt confident and then it's a great piece of opportunism by the kid who was the best player on the park and he's chipped Chris Elliott from his own half.

"They get the penalty afterwards and it's about their lad willing to win the ball and make something out of nothing. Credit to Chris for saving the penalty it was a big moment in the game. They were a good side, good in midfield, good at the back, passed it well. They were strong and we lacked the cutting edge up top, it was powder-puff, we could have been there until 8pm trying to get something."

Alfreton have sunk to three straight defeats in all competitions from being unbeaten in seven in all competitions, but the recent slump doesn't worry the boss: "Nothing's changed to be honest, the cup we can't do anything about that, that circumstance gave us a near impossible job and our performance against Chorley was below what we produced at Spennymoor, I thought we were okay but our balls in the box didn't have anyone on the other end connecting.

"Brody Robertson had a good chance, he's missed it and from dead balls we were not good enough. Sometimes you just got to want to score and we didn't have that, we brought Ricky German in because we lacked that, he's gone back and surely Ricky can't be the difference. We're back to what we had before then but we need to get back to the performances of a few weeks back during our unbeaten run.

"There are things that need addressing and we have a free week where we can work on it. We have to get back to doing what we do good. The simple things, the basics."

With the Reds not in action until the trip to Tamworth on the 21st October, McDermott saw the positives rather than the deterrents: "Everyone wants to play but this week gives us a chance to get bodies back fit, Steve Williams came in at centre-back and he hadn't had a game all pre-season and that showed for him at times and they were not going to allow sloppiness and we've missed some key players and it gives them another week of training, another week to get people back.

"It's important to have players in the right positions, round pegs, round holes. The forwards have to be quicker, more positive and need to want to score a goal.

"We move on now and we need to get back to our best for the next game".