DEFENDER Toby Mullarkey provided a player’s perspective on Altrincham’s struggle for survival in the National League and insisted: “If we stick together, we can do it”.

Alty were back on terms against in-form Torquay United on Saturday when Mullarkey advanced from the halfway line to power a spectacular equaliser into the bottom corner of the net from 30 yards.

But an elementary defensive error was ruthlessly punished early in the second half to inflict a 2-1 defeat on a Robins side who are now without a win since beating Weymouth on November 20.

It left them worryingly close to the drop zone, having played more games than all the teams below them, but centre-back Mullarkey struck a defiant note ahead of Saturday’s trip to Solihull Moors.

He said: “We’ve got to cut out mistakes that are proving so costly, but the first half was probably the best we have played in a long time.

“Even after going behind again, we did more than enough to have taken something out of the game and were unlucky not to.

“We’ve had two efforts cleared off the line, as well as hitting the bar, and, any other day, one of those will go in and we are back in business.

“Things are not falling our way, but we’ve only ourselves to blame for the errors we are making.

“We have to put that right, and we will. No midweek game this week gives us the chance to work on what we’re doing wrong, and we’ll make full use of that.

“People may wonder about confidence, but everyone can see we are playing our brand of football and getting at the opposition.

“The mistakes have to stop, but if we are putting in performances like this, confidence is fine.

“If we keep playing how we can, it’s only a matter of time before we get a positive result, and that’s all we are focused on.

“We are a squad who are together. I’ve never known a changing room like it.

“We are all 100-per-cent committed to putting things right and getting back on track, and by sticking together, we will do it.”