Altrincham paid the price for a "really poor" first half as their late-season slump continued with a 2-1 defeat at Weymouth.

Trailing at half-time, Alty rallied strongly in the second half and levelled through a typically-unerring long-range shot from Ryan Colclough, only to be undone by a late Weymouth winner.

Assistant manager Neil Sorvel had little difficulty pinpointing the cause of Alty’s latest defeat, their sixth in the last seven games.

He said: "The opening five minutes or so aside, we were really poor in that first half.

“We had three or four decent phases of possession, where we moved the ball pretty well, but that only translates to three or four minutes in the entire half, which is nothing like enough.

“There was a general sloppiness about us, and we were as poor as I’ve seen us for a while.

"They had the ball far too long for my liking, but we were much better from the off in the second half.

Ryan Colcloughs shot finds the back of the net. Picture: Jonathan Moore

Ryan Colclough's shot finds the back of the net. Picture: Jonathan Moore

“The strike from Ryan was something we’ve seen on numerous occasions this season, and we were generally much more competitive. We had the better chances, and by the end, I felt we had done more than enough to have taken something out of it."

As Alty prepared to welcome back supporters against Yeovil Town on Saturday, Sorvel set his sights on finishing top of the four promoted sides, ahead of King’s Lynn Town, Wealdstone and

Weymouth. “It would be a really good achievement to do that," he said. “It needs a positive finish from us, and that’s what we will be aiming for.

“We’ve got three home games left, with the fans back in, and we need some good performances to get them on our side.

“We’ve got to produce something that will excite them, and we can do that by playing to the level we’re capable of.”