Paul Holleran spoke to BBC CWR's Brian Halford after Leamington's disappointing 5-2 defeat to the bookies' promotion favourites Coalville Town.
"Coalville bossed it in the early stages," Holleran said. "They're a good outfit with lots of good players. We found our way back into the game, then. We tinkered with our system a bit to try and give us a bit more control in the middle of the park. I don't think we were great all afternoon but we've shown a bit of character to come back twice and got in the game, which was evenly balanced at that point.
"The facts are the facts though, we're 2-2 with 86 minutes and you're 5-2 down at the end of the game, I think it tells its own story. I think what we've got in the changing room and the calibre of some of the players, that shouldn't happen. It's been a poor afternoon for us all round, we haven't been good but when you get to late in the game against one of, if not the best side in the league you'll take it and go again. But it's really concerning and something we need to resolve."
Callum Stewart scored his first competitive Leamington goal, and the gaffer commented "Yeah (it was a good goal). At that point, we had the upper hand but on the whole they looked more leggy than us, passed the ball better than us and of course you'd have taken a draw but it's very hard for me to stand here with 2-2 at 86 minutes and try and explain what I've just seen. Some of the individual errors we've made and how we've not reacted to the space. Some of our decision making was mindblowing, it hasn't been good all afternoon but the injury time period is a period where coaches up and down the country could use to show their sides how not to defend.
"When we've been in this league before, we've come away to places that are hard to win at and grind out a result, keep a clean sheet. There's plenty for us to think about, to work on and some realisation for one or two people."
Halford then asked Holleran about the new players creating a "work in progress", which Holleran replied "Yeah I'll accept that and I know the first ten games will be interesting but I've just told the players that I know we've got a bit to do and in some of the games so far there's been some really good performances and good periods. I'll accept there's some teething problems but not that. What's happened at the end today is nothing to do with the system or new players. That's to do with not defending properly, not being switched on, being too easy to hop around, skip around and that ten minute period will take a bit of explaining."
