March Town United thumped 6-0 by Great Yarmouth Town

Paul Blanchflower’s tenure as March Town United manager got off to the worst possible start with a demoralising 6-0 loss at Great Yarmouth Town on Saturday.

The Hares’ players had to make a two hour trip in their own cars after the club’s minibus was condemned and things did not get any better once they arrived on the East coast.

The players were seriously off the pace in their first game since they lost 7-1 at Team Bury more than a month ago.

The heavy loss sees March drop one place to 17th in the Thurlow Nunn First Division.

Blanchflower said: “A combination of things contributed to the poor performance - the minibus was condemned so the players had to drive two hours to the game, which is not what you want.

“Our fitness levels were low because we’ve not played in a long time and the other team wanted it more.”

Blanchflower says he learnt a lot about his players on Saturday and will not tolerate any more lethargic performances as the Hares battle to ensure league survival this season.

He said: “At the weekend I told the players that the slate was wiped clean since I had only see them play a couple of times.

“I learnt a lot about what the players can do and who is up for it.

“I’m going to instil a harder regime. We should not have to worry about players’ fitness.

“The main positive from the game was that by the end we had three under-18 players on the pitch. Lewis Welcher in particular made a good case for himself during his 30 minutes.”

Blanchflower says he intends to make changes to the team when the Hares travel to AFC Sudbury Reserves on Saturday.

When the two sides met in November at the GER, David Jackson’s double helped March pick up a 2-1 win - one of only four wins in 24 league games this season.

Jackson will be missing on Saturday after injuring his hamstring against Great Yarmouth, but Gary White and Jonathan Gibbons are expected to return.