Following the 3-1 defeat at Colchester United, the Alex boss could not hide his disappointment after letting a 1-0 lead slip away in such dramatic fashion.

Crewe were left ruing missing chances in the first half and then after conceding three avoidable goals, David Artell could not excuse the second half performance.

Artell told the club’s official website:  “If you don’t defend set plays then you don’t win football matches and we got what we deserved because of that. They didn’t have a shot in the first half, I think they had one from 25 yards that went over the bar and then they have a corner and score.

“We had worked on them and told them how important they always are. For 38 minutes we played some good stuff and should have been out of sight. We had plenty of chances and hands down that is a game we should have won.

“Our mindset has to be a lot better, especially away from home. They raised the tempo a bit second half and then they score from another corner. It is a collective responsibility. We are all in this together and he has had a shot against the bar and then heads home the rebound. That’s three contacts inside the box and we didn’t react. If it was Nott County when the mindset was right we would of. We would have been sharper, quicker and reacted to it. You have to say to yourself, they are not going to reach it first never mind score. 

“I had a go at half-time because it should have been over and then a right go at the end because they have  had two corners and scored two goals. If you don’t want to be brave, get your head on things and show that courage then it is going to be a long hard season.”