FC CLACTON boss Phil Yearling pulled no punches in assessing his side’s deflating 3-2 defeat at home to Woodbridge, on Saturday.

The Thurlow Nunn League premier division basement boys registered only their second win of the season, on a miserable day at the Rush Green Bowl.

Jake Plane’s headed goal put the Seasiders ahead, but Woodbridge scored twice and would have been further in front by half-time, had it not been for Clacton goalkeeper Joe Fowler.

The Suffolk side then added their third after the break, before substitute Ali McInnes scrambled Clacton’s second.

“Our first-half performance showed why we’re in the position we’re in and was completely unacceptable,” said Yearling.

“The sad thing is that we just didn’t have the heart for it and made them look very good.

“People weren’t throwing themselves into challenges or geeing each other up.

“One or two players should hang their heads in shame.

“They embarrassed themselves and it was a completely different story to last week, when we played so well at Felixstowe.

“The second half was much better, but by then the damage was done.

“It was like shutting the stable door after the horse had bolted and we accepted defeat far too easily, as a team.

“People paid good money to come and watch us and they’d have every right to be critical of some of the performances.

“We can say all we like about this being a nice bunch of lads with lots of potential, but this is senior football.

“The players have to understand that and show more responsibility.”

Yearling admitted his side may have shown complacency, due to their opposition.

Woodbridge are rock bottom of the premier division table and had only won one game prior to Saturday’s success at the Bowl.

“We’ve been telling the boys to treat every game the same way, whether we’re playing (top-of-the-table) Hadleigh or Woodbridge,” said Yearling.

“We’ve got to learn very quickly that we can’t switch on and off, depending who we’re playing.

“We’ve got to perform in every game and if we don’t, we’ll get more results like this one.”

Both sides were reduced to ten men after a late altercation, with defender James Gregory seeing red for the Seasiders.

However, Yearling described the decision as “contentious” and added: “We’d got a goal back and were in the ascendancy, but that fracas killed the game.

“There wasn’t a bad tackle in the match and for it to kick off like that made it look much worse than it was.”