Wisbech defender demands that players start taking responsibility for the club’s poor performances in the United Counties League Premier Division North

Max Matless admits Wisbech Town's players must take collective responsibility for recent results on the pitch - and has vowed that the squad will get it right.

The club's captain came out to address the media after the Fenmen were thumped 6-2 at home by seventh-place Belper United at Fountain Fresh Park on Saturday.

The defender pulled no punches after the club's flagging form continued.

Mattless said: "From my perspective from a team and as a playing group, we've got all the tools we need from the management to go and perform and we have to start taking responsibility for our performances, certainly the last couple.

"We've been given every opportunity to go and perform on a Saturday or Tuesday or whenever it might be but for whatever reason the last couple of games we haven't done that.

"We went into the game full of spirits and it was a game where we felt we could get something out of.

“We've set up in a certain way where we can get a result and our expectations compared to what has been shown are miles apart.

"The difference at the moment is that the basics of our work ethic and application to go on to win a football match is so far away from what it needs to be to achieve anything out of a football game, particularly the league we play in.

"We've got a good squad here and one thing that I am willing to guarantee is that we will get it right going forward."

Nicholas Hood and Samuel Birks put The Nailers 2-0 up within 17 minutes, Birks adding his second to make it 3-0 at the break.

Robert Conyard pulled one back for The Fenmen just after the restart but Birks completed his hat-trick to make it 4-1 after 52 minutes.

Substitute Daniel Odunaiya made it five 20 minutes later and Tom Eccleshall scored a sixth before Conyard got his second of the game and his fifth in 12 games this season five minutes from the end.

With seven games remaining, Wisbech are eight points clear of the drop zone but have played more games than the teams below them and have now conceded 73 times in 31 games.

It doesn't get any easier for Luke Hipwell's side with league leaders Eastwood CFC the visitors to Fountain Fresh Park on Saturday.

Before the game, the club announced that Helkias Acheampong had signed, alongside playing for Kings Lynn U19s. Tenacious and energetic midfielder Alex Young has also joined after recently moving to the area.

However, Stacey Cartwright has left the club by mutual agreement and Aaron Butcher has moved to relegation rivals Deeping Rangers.

Wisbech Town: Lakin, Challinor, Williams (Lennon 75), Barker, Mattless, Nicholson (Falcao 60), Bennett, Young (Wilson 45), Conyard, Harris (Langford 60), Ward (Acheampong 75).

Attendance: 178.