Tommy Leigh emphasised the importance of Bristol Rovers' fixture against Oldham Athletic and the need to put in a better performance after a 3-1 loss to Cambridge United on Saturday.
The Pirates were looking to get back to winning ways after losing a 3-2 thriller against Chesterfield at The Memorial Stadium the weekend before. However, they could not match their level of performance at the Cledara Abbey Stadium.
Joe Quigley had levelled the score just before half-time from the penalty spot to cancel out Ben Knight's opener, but the U's midfielder scored again to claim his brace before Kelland Watts got their third goal to all but confirm the three points for the hosts.
Leigh was frustrated with the defeat, but knows there is a lot more to come from his side if they can start to play with more confidence.
“It was very disappointing," he said. "I feel like out there, you know what you are going to get from them lot, just kick it and run in Cambridge. There were some parts in the game where we got the ball down and played, and we were very good at it as we created a couple of chances.
“I feel like the penalty came from us playing and getting the throw-in. It came from us playing out from the back, keeping the ball a bit and then moving it about instead of just going long. It’s something that we can work on, and the next game is massive for us in Oldham away. We need to go there and hopefully get the three points.
"Cambridge is not a nice place to come, but I feel like we need to have the confidence. I’ve seen it in training. I’ve not been here for long, but I’ve seen it in training, the lads get it down, they play, and I feel like we can do that in games, and you can hurt teams."
Oldham are up next for the Pirates. The Latics gained promotion to Sky Bet League Two and have had a steady season. Well away from the relegation zone on their return to the English Football League, they will be looking to return to winning ways, with three straight defeats followed by a draw against Fleetwood Town last time out.
After playing against Oldham in pre-season with Bradford City, Leigh knows what to expect from the Gas' upcoming opponents and wants his side to put on a better performance.
“It was disappointing to give away three points to Cambridge, but they are doing well this season," said Leigh. "Obviously, what they do works in League Two. We’ve got Oldham coming up now, so the focus now is Oldham. We’ve got to have a look at what has happened today, but focus more on Oldham because that’s the bigger picture.
“I played against them in pre-season, and they are the same team [as Cambridge]. They have a big striker, they go long, and they work off him. So, hopefully, we can look at that on Monday and highlight what they do best, and hopefully, we can put in a better performance than that because we know we weren't good enough, and that’s me included.
"I’ve watched a couple of games before coming here. I watched the game against Walsall, and we were in people's faces, and there was a togetherness. Someone presses, and another player presses behind you.
"Everyone was just on it. So, I feel like we have to look at it on Monday, have a look at where we went wrong, we go through it and pick up the good from it because I think there were a couple of good situations on the pitch, but we didn’t do it to the best of our abilities."
Leigh was one of Rovers' late arrivals in the January transfer window, arriving on deadline day on loan from Sky Bet League One outfit Bradford. The 25-year-old came off the bench against Chesterfield to make his debut in the blue-and-white quarters before making his first start versus Cambridge.
Leigh admitted it has been a fast start to life as a Rovers player, but he has really enjoyed it.
“The gaffer is superb; the fans are fantastic like against Cambridge. I apologise for the performance, but it was a great atmosphere from them lot.
"It’s a great club to come to, and hopefully we can knuckle down and wait until the Oldham game. We’re going to go in fresh, try and forget about the game and concentrate on Oldham now."
