Mark Yates has demanded his players ensure that they get things right starting with a home fixture against Altrincham next weekend, after admitting to being 'shell-shocked' during the 4-2 defeat at Mansfield on Saturday.

Harriers were thoroughly tormented and dominated by the Stags' experienced front pairing of Mark Stallard and Jason Lee and found themselves 3-0 down at the interval thanks to a catalogue of self-destructing errors.

An angry Yates said after the eventual 4-2 defeat: "The first-half defensive performance was poor, and that angers me even more because we've been working on that.

"We worked on Jason Lee winning his headers and Mark Stallard getting the flicks, and it was just too easy for them.

"It's something we'll try and address and sort out but my defenders have got to get back to keeping clean sheets and limiting people's chances, otherwise it's going to be a tough one.

"We gifted them three goals - they've got some very good players but no way on earth are they better than us and I'm bitterly disappointed - at half-time I was shell-shocked."

Even with the above in mind, Harriers should be applauded for their application in the second period - substitutes Martin Brittain, Matthew Barnes-Homer and David McDermott all impressed as the deficit was reduced to just a single goal before Aaron O'Connor's injury-time fourth for Mansfield.

Yates pointed out that some members of the squad may do well to take example from in-form Justin Richards - the striker has begun the season in superb style, taking his goal tally to three in as many games with another near-perfect performance.

"I had a few choice words with one or two at half-time - I wanted a reaction and I certainly got that -we were by far the better team in the second half," continued Yates.

"The reason Justin Richards got such a good goal - and what a goal it was - was because he put it in for 90 minutes and worked his socks off throughout and never gave up on anything.

"He made a lot more right decisions than wrong decisions, he won his flick-ons and kept the ball for us and he scored a worldy.

"Some other players have got to realise that you score decent goals and do decent things in games by working hard, and one or two didn't do that today."

Yates admitted that he too will be subject to the post-mortem that follows this afternoon's game - but was keen to use the second-half performance of his players as a springboard to something of a re-start to the season.

He added: "Perhaps I picked the wrong team to start the game with? I'll have a good look at myself tonight and the players have got to look at themselves.

"We've just said in the dressing room that we've gifted teams eight points and our season started at 4:00pm this afternoon.

"A week and an hour late, but our season has started now and we've got to get it right."