Crowe keen for reaction after '˜terrible' display

Brig capitulated after the hosts opened the scoring, and Crowe is keen to see a response when they host second-placed Northwich Victoria at the Sir Tom Finney Stadium tonight.

He said: “I was not happy with the result.

“It is possibly the worst performance I have seen since me and (assistant boss) Neil Reynolds took over.

“The lads know how I felt.

“I can’t explain what happened.

“The team we had out on paper had enough quality to win the game.

“To perform the way we did after the first 20 minutes was inexplicable.

“When the first goal went in, our heads just dropped and we never recovered.

“We now face Northwich Victoria who are second in the league. The lads have had three days to stew and we have got to get a reaction.

“They shouldn’t need a team talk, they should know themselves what they need to do and want to put that result right.”

Brig keeper Lee Dovey is set to return to the starting line-up after he was rested on Saturday.

And midfielder Matty Kay is also set to return after missing Saturday due to a sickness bug.

The result leaves Brig 13th in the NPL First Division North table and after back-to-back defeats to Burscough and Droylsden, Crowe’s men have a tough run-in to try and regain some ground and make the play-offs.

He said: “We have got a tough run in now.

“We face Northwich, Trafford, Clitheroe and Ossett Town in the space of nine days.

“It is going to take it’s toll on the squad. We have not done ourselves any favours with the last two results. But you never know what can happen in football. We will keep going until it is mathematically impossible to get in the play-offs.”