Sean McConville says harsh words have been exchanged as Accrington Stanley look to ‘stop the rot’ of five League One losses at Lincoln City tomorrow night.
The Reds have conceded three goals in each of their last five league games and have dropped to 20th in League One, two points above the bottom four.
The players were called in yesterday and John Coleman says will be in every day until they get at least a point on the board.
Stanley record league appearance holder McConville knows they have to turn it around quickly– especially as the 2021/22 campaign turned on a result at the LNER Stadium – and a scrappy 1-0 win would do just nicely.
“We need to come together as a group, we have ironed a few issues out yesterday and the biggest one, in any walk of life when you are struggling, is that you just have to work that little bit harder,” said the 33-year-old.
“It’s a cliché but, if collectively we do that and all try and give that little bit more, I think the results will start to turn.
“During my time here I think that’s always been the case. When you have been on a bad run, you don’t play attractive, nice football to get out of it, you dog a 1-0 out or 0-0 and build from that.
“I remember last season we were on a terrible run. I remember speaking after the Burton game last season which was the lowest point of that season, we scraped a 1-0 win at Lincoln, I think Colby (Bishop) scored.
“We didn’t play great, no one probably remembers the game, but then we went on a run and ended up doing well and we have to mirror that this year.
“Fleetwood last Saturday is probably the lowest point of the season.
“We need to take what we did from last year and, as a collective - players, staff and fans - we need everyone to get us over that line and stop the rot.
“We need to go to Lincoln, batten down the hatches and stop conceding the three goals a game as, if you keep doing that, the reality is you will go down.
“We have to come out fighting and try and get a point on the board or all three.
“Yesterday, people got told in no uncertain terms if they are not doing things they should be doing, myself included, and the staff can take feedback from players and how they are feeling.
“It’s a collective, we are all in it together, there are no fractions.
“It’s just that little bit of quality we are lacking at the minute but we can overcome that with hard work at Lincoln and kick on from there.”
He admitted confidence is low in the camp, especially with experienced players missing due to long term injuries, and he knows, as a senior player, he needs to stand up.
“It looks like players aren’t trying but once you concede a goal, with the run we are on, confidence, especially in a young team, can dwindle away.
“Any player to be honest, myself included, when you are on a run of bad results and you concede you do feel ‘here we go again’ and it’s hard to get away from that.
“But you have got to have a stronger mentality of ‘right we are still in the game, we can still get a point or win the game.’
“If we go 1-0 down tomorrow it’s about reacting. I don’t think we reacted properly from going 1-0 down on Saturday and that’s something we have spoken about.”
McConville admitted it may not be pretty at the Imps but it doesn’t matter as long as the Reds come away with something.
“Results are the biggest thing. I would rather go to Lincoln and play terrible and get a point or a win than play brilliant and lose.
“We had a few games where we have played well, had pats on the back, but it doesn’t mean anything really. You need points on the board, wins or draws.
“You need to get to 50 points as quickly as possible because it’s a damning league and if you are on a bad run there’s no other team that will feel sorry for you.
“It’s up to us to come out fighting and really put on a performance tomorrow that warrants an Accrington team under the management that we have.
“We have to play for the badge and play for the supporters that have been unbelievable, they have stuck with us, they are behind the lads.
“We always punch above our weight every season in this league with the money we pay, the players we have on the pitch compared to every other team.
“We are playing massive clubs every week, clubs I watched when I was growing up in the Premier League – Bolton, Portsmouth, Derby, Sheffield Wednesday. We thrive off it, we love it and in order to keep these games coming, we need to stop the rot and then build on it.”
The full pre-match interview with Sean McConville is available to watch on the club's official YouTube channel, CLICK HERE to find out more!