Fleetwood Town keeper rues small errors which are costing the club dearly

Town are yet to pick up any points this season, losing narrowly in every game so far ahead of this afternoon’s home match with Cheltenham Town (3pm).

A 1-0 defeat against Sheffield Wednesday last time out made it three in a row for the Cod Army in League One and four in all competitions.

Last season, Simon Grayson’s men boasted one of the best defensive records in the division.

Things haven’t been going as smoothly this time around but Cairns is confident they’ll get it right.

The keeper said: “We’re just getting punished on tiny errors at the minute.

“I want to keep clean sheets. That’s part and parcel of me being a goalkeeper, that’s something that I pride myself on.

“I’m constantly speaking to the defenders and everyone is a defender when we’re defending.

“I’m constantly in tune with them on what we can do to help or make things better.

“Those little details, we’re getting punished on at the wrong time. The types of teams we’ve come across are the ones that punish you for those mistakes – and they have done.

“We’ve been caught licking our wounds a little bit.

“On the flip side, and I’ve watched the games back, some of the defensive work that goes on that people don’t see is brilliant.

“I’m not frustrated with them. We understand the process and we understand that we will get there.

“That’s the beautiful thing about this group, the honesty that we all have.

“It’s not always the arm on the shoulder. Sometimes it’s a little bit of a telling, sometimes it is the arm around the shoulder.

“We’re a great bunch that can listen, every single one of us is willing to learn.

“We’re all here to learn and get better. We will constantly look at things.”

Today sees Town host a Cheltenham side that won League Two last season and have a renowned attacking weapon in Ben Tozer’s long throws.

Cairns admitted: “Other teams possess different types of attacks and different armouries.

“That is one of theirs. We understand it is there and we will be ready for that challenge and willing to step up to it.

“It takes a lot of pressure off the boys if a goalkeeper can come and collect.

“If it’s the right moment to come and collect it, then I’ll come and collect it.”

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