FC CLACTON assistant boss Mike Wallace is backing his players to respond positively to Saturday’s setback at Thetford Town.

Three-down in 22 minutes, the Seasiders pulled a couple of goals back before the break thanks to Matt Eve and Kevin Coyle but ended up crashing to a 6-2 defeat.

Wallace admitted it was a “bad day at the office”, especially with defender Steve Downes being sent off in the closing stages for kicking out at a Thetford defender.

However, he is remaining positive and believes his players will put it behind them and move on - hopefully beginning with a positive result against Ely City at the Rush Green Bowl on Saturday.

“We gave ourselves a huge mountain to climb after conceding those three early goals,” said Wallace, who works alongside first-team boss Kieron Shelley.

“Then we got ourselves back into it - only to not perform in the second half. We didn’t keep our momentum going and, in many ways, half-time came too soon for us.

“We battled away and worked hard but sometimes that’s not enough. You need a bit of quality, too, and that was missing from our performance.

“Instead, we made some costly mistakes - giving the ball away in silly areas - and got badly punished.

“Having said that, we’re a young side, learning and developing all the time.

“We’re going to make mistakes, as a management team and as a group of players.

“We’re realistic and know it goes with the territory at the moment.

“Now we have to put it behind us and learn from it. If we stick together, we’ll come back stronger.

“The most important thing is that we know what we need to do to put things right and where we need to improve.

“I’d be far more worried if we were left scratching our heads after games wondering how we’d lost.”

Downes’ late red card compounded a miserable afternoon.

Wallace himself was also thought to have been sent off after saying something to the referee’s assistant.

However, he said it was just a misunderstanding and that while he was asked to leave the technical area, he was not sent off and has not been mentioned in the referee’s report.

There will therefore be no further punishment.

“It was just a misunderstanding which was sorted out after the game,” said Wallace.

“The referee’s assistant thought I said something I didn’t and I was backed up by the Thetford manager.”

Speaking generally about his club’s discipline, Wallace added: “It was disappointing to pick up another red card - our seventh of the season.

“It’s something we’ve spoken to the players about, although some of the cards we’ve picked up this season - red and yellow - have been harsh. Sometimes I wonder if our reputation as a dirty side goes before us.”

Clacton’s reserves had been due to entertain Alresford Colne Rangers in Essex and Suffolk Border League division one on Saturday.

However, the match was postponed due to the weather - as was last Thursday’s Thurlow Nunn Youth League south division contest at home to Witham Town.

Clacton’s under-18s are due to travel to Halstead Town tonight while the reserves go to Bradfield Rovers on Saturday.