Davis gives his reaction following 4-1 defeat at Swindon

Following a slow start in the first half at the County Ground, which saw Crewe 3-0 down and chasing an almost impossible job, a disappointed Steve Davis was critical of our mistakes but says his young players are having to learn fast. In the second half, the average age of the team was just 20 and Davis says a night like this was character building.

After the defeat, Davis told the Crewe Alex web-site: "It was a tough night for them and when you have a lot of young players out there, then it is going to be difficult sometimes, but we are at the stage of the season now where we need to know if these players are going to be good enough for us in this league. We have a few games left and I need to have a look at them and give them a go.

"They have got to do the business and show that they can do it. They have to show what talent they have got and the temperament they have. There are contracts to play for and that is on my mind as well. It was tough and it became a real character test when you are 3-0 down after half an hour. Some of them did okay and some struggled but that is what you are going to get when the average age of the team is something like 20, 21, as it was tonight.

"I am not going to be too critical of them because some of them were playing only there second, third games in the first team but that is where the test comes. We have had a really good season and managed to win some silverware with the win in the Johnstone's Pant Trophy. We have had a good season but tonight shows that the strength in depth isn't there yet.

"We made too many mistakes for the goals. We conceded some poor goals from our point of view but we still made chances of our own and it could have been a high scoring game. We hit the bar in the first half, and had a couple of one-on-ones but couldn't convert them. It could have been a 7-5 or something like that because it was a really open game and myself and Neil have certainly learn't a few things that will help us moving forward for next season.