CHERRIES boss Kevin Bond wants his players to stop shipping late goals and has challenged them to discover a "winning mentality" - and quickly.
Bond saw Cherries sacrifice crucial points over the festive period and was heavily critical of his charges following their agonising defeat at Brighton on New Year's Day.
Alex Revell's injury-time winner denied Cherries a share of the spoils at Withdean and came just days after Barry Corr had netted a late leveller for Swindon in a 2-2 draw.
Bond will be looking for a vast improvement at Cheltenham's Whaddon Road tomorrow - the scene of another dramatic defeat last season when they were sunk by Damian Spencer's 90th-minute strike.
He told the Daily Echo: "We've got to pull together and I'm right behind them. Although we're all battling away, it doesn't mean we can't give one another a rollicking or a kick up the backside when we need it. We all need reminders from time to time.
"I couldn't fault the players for their determination and commitment at Brighton. But it's no good concentrating for 89 minutes if you're going to switch off for the final minute and it's going to cost you the game. That's exactly what happened and it can cost you more than a point.
"We are all responsible for it, it's not just down to one person and everybody has got their part to play. Collectively, we need to think about what is hurting us badly and do something about it.
"If we go a goal up at Cheltenham with two minutes to go, we've got to make sure we defend properly and that I'm not sat on edge of my seat thinking we're going to give one away any second.
"I've told them what I think and I want them to think about it long and hard.
"It's not a me-and-them type of situation. I know I have to take responsibility but there is only so much I can do when I'm standing on the side of the pitch. I'm not prepared to take responsibility for them messing up in the last minute of the game, that's not fair and it isn't right but we need to instil it into them.
"We've got to get that winning mentality. It's no good getting your noses in front and then giving cheap goals away because that will get us nowhere. We're all in it together but people do need to be told once in a while that it isn't good enough."
Cherries: (from) Stewart, Young, Gowling, Perrett, Pearce, Cummings, Cooper, Hollands, Vokes, Pitman, Kuffour, Bradbury, Tessem, Bartley, McQuoid, Partington, Finlay, Queree, Moss.
Cheltenham Town: (from) Higgs, Caines, Gallinagh, Wright, Agostino, Bird, Connolly, Lindegaard, Gillespie, Connor, Vincent, Scott Brown, B Gill, Madjo, Brooker, Russell, Scott P Brown.
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