Fleetwood Town players are challenged to show a tougher edge

The Cod Army have lost five of their last six games, the most recent being last week’s defeat to Accrington Stanley in the Papa John’s Trophy.

It was a more youthful Town side than usual in action with Stanley scoring a couple of stunning long-range strikes.

Town’s recent league results have seen them drop to 22nd but a win over Morecambe at Highbury on Saturday could potentially see them climb four places.

Grayson wants more of a mean streak from his side as they look for better form.

He said: “No, I’m not feeling sorry for any of my players.

“I don’t care how old you are – 18, 21, or 35 – and if you’ve played two games, 20, 100 or 300, you have to make sure you learn from experiences.

“Credit to the Accrington lads who hit those first two: they won’t score many goals like that in their careers, but it’s the second-half performance I’m more concerned about.

“The more experienced players, even if you are 24 or 25, have to be better in what we are doing and more ruthless.

“We are a little bit too nice at times. We don’t have that edge or nastiness to us.

“If there’s a 50-50 we have to make sure we come out with that ball, and at the moment, we are not doing that enough.

“When a team ask questions of us, we have to stand up and be counted and mix it.

“Whether we are playing in blustery conditions or bright sunshine, we have to make sure we are more ruthless and win more second balls.”

Thanks for reading. If you value what we do and are able to support us, a digital subscription is just £1 per month for the first two months. Try us today by clicking here