After seeing Crewe Alexandra make such a dreadful start to today's home match with Southend United, first team coach Steve Holland says he takes full responsibility for our slowness out of the blocks. Crewe found themselves 2-0 down within the first 20 minutes and Holland described it as 'unacceptable'.

After our 3-1 defeat to Southend, Steve Holland told us: "I accept full responsibility for that result, it is my job to prepare the team. I prepare them for the game and I haven't done my job properly.

It was a poor start to the game. All of the back four looked nervous and hesitant and the midfield didn't look like they wanted the ball at all except maybe Kenny Lunt, who I thought did some good things sometimes. Joe Anyinsah and Dean Morgan played well at times as well, but Dean didn't do enough with the ball. The start of the game was abysmal and was really an unacceptable standard.

"To have missed two penalties, I don't think they were badly struck, neither of them was a poor penalty but they were 2 good saves for their goalkeeper.

"I was more pleased with the second half performance, all I said to them at half time was that they needed to accept responsibility in the game and compete mentally as well

"They needed to stop their opponent, want the ball and do the right things with it as well as playing the football. A lot of them didn't do that today.

In an honest assessment, Holland added: "It is my fault, the fans deserve a lot better than that, but they got behind them in the second half. We have worked hard all week. I thought I had prepared them properly but I obviously hadn't. To get the start we had today is unacceptable, they need to be mentally prepared as well as anything and be in the right frame of mind. "