Spalding RFC captain Ryan Chappell believes his side need to get more physical with their Midlands One East rivals if they are to end their miserable run of form.
The new skipper was speaking after seeing Town’s losing league run stretch to 15 games at Derby last Saturday .
Once again, Spalding’s young side showed glimpses of their potential with a super 20-minute spell in the 78-14 loss.
But they faded badly after that – and Chappell accepts that he and his team-mates are currently something of a soft touch.
“We’ve done that a few times this season,” said the Town captain. “At the start of the second half we really showed our potential – and the lads buzz off that kind of spell.
“But it’s fair to say we slacked a bit after that. I don’t know if the heads dropped or if it was a lack of fitness, but we let ourselves down again.
“I think the mentality needs to change and we need to show a bit more aggression. You can tell in the rucks, tackles and mauls that other teams are bigger and stronger than us.
“I don’t want us to try and hurt teams, but I’d like to see a bit more controlled aggression if I’m honest.”
Spalding’s search for a first win of the season takes them to Huntingdon and District this Saturday (2.15pm).
Hosts Huntingdon are in the bottom five, but are some 27 points better off than Town.
Chappell believes his side can break their duck this weekend – and they could be boosted by the return of former captain Harry Sharman, who featured for the second side last weekend after four months out.
“I don’t want any negativity in the camp,” added Chappell. “People keep asking me about relegation – I don’t want to hear about that.
“I want us to wear the shirt with pride and for the lads to show some passion.
“Huntingdon is one of those games we can target for a win. I certainly don’t want an entire season with no victory etched in my memory.”
