Pete Wild says Barrow must not ‘start pointing fingers’ after Salford defeat

Pete Wild has called for togetherness after his Barrow side fell to a third defeat in a row with a 5-3 loss at Salford.

The promotion-chasing Bluebirds let a lead slip as the Ammies edged an entertaining eight-goal thriller.

“There’s loads of positives out of today,” said Wild, whose side are without a win in five away games.

“When you score three away from home – and probably should score six – and you don’t win, you’re frustrated.

“We’ve got to be better than that but when I look back at the game in the next couple days, I think I’ll see some real positives and that’s what I’ll dwell on.

“It’s a 46-game season; you’ll go through periods when you look solid and then you don’t, and unfortunately that’s us at the moment.

“We’re all trying ever so hard and you can’t fault their effort. We must make sure we don’t catastrophise the situation or start pointing fingers.

“You don’t become a bad team overnight and it’s been our first bad week of the season.

“There’s 13 games to go and the lads have been brilliant, and I’ve just got to make sure they continue to grind into the next two months.”

Callum Hendry handed the hosts an early lead with an impressive strike from range, but their advantage proved short-lived.

Barrow completed a quickfire turnaround with goals from Cole Stockton and Tyrell Warren either side of the interval.

A high-octane second half ensued with Salford regaining their lead thanks to a Conor McAleny leveller and Hendry’s second strike of the afternoon.

Matt Smith added a late double to clinch the home side’s victory.

Stockton completed his brace to add Barrow a mere consolation.

The result means Salford extend their unbeaten start to life under Karl Robinson to eight matches.

“Scoring goals and asking questions, it’s what we’re about,” said the Ammies boss.

“People will forget how big of a result that is; Barrow are a team who should go into the top four and for large parts, we’ve looked the better team.

“For me, that’s a tremendous testament to the players, how hard they work and how much they really want it.

“For as long as I’ve been doing this and watching football, the hardest-working teams generally win most matches and then your talent will overrun your opposition.

“At this football club, nobody is any bigger than anybody else; we all have a mutual responsibility for why the club is where it’s at.

“I now share that responsibility and no one person can make the difference; we need a stern and steely mindset together otherwise it’s pointless.

“We’re open, we’re aggressive, we’re creating an identity and every single day we’re becoming better and better together.”