‘We don’t mean to be disrespectful – but that’s not how things are being received’ – Moneyfields boss Turnbull after Wessex League derby loss at Horndean

And he believes a couple of pre-match incidents have rubbed rival clubs up the wrong way.

Moneys have lost three of their last four Premier Division games, including two PO postcode derby beatings - 2-0 at Baffins last month and 3-0 at Michael Birmingham’s Horndean last night.

‘We weren’t good enough,’ Turnbull declared of the Five Heads Park reverse.

‘We need to learn quickly. We were a bit naive - both management and players - in our application from the get-go.

‘I’ve learnt a few things. What last season was seen as fun - and is still seen as fun inside the changing room - can be misconstrued by others.

‘One of the players rocked up onto the pitch (at Horndean) before the game, had a look around, and shouted ‘this is my house.’ It was tongue in cheek, it was not malicious, but it can easily be misconstrued and that was Birmy’s team talk done - ‘this lot are arrogant, etc’.

‘I didn’t see it but Wilks (Shaun Wilkinson) told me something similar happened at Baffins before the game. They’d set up their drills and a couple of our players took some of their balls and were messing about. It wasn’t meant to be disrespectful - 100 per cent not - but that’s how things are being received.

‘That wasn’t the reason we lost (at Horndean). We didn’t get the ball wide, we didn’t use the width - we tried to be too intricate through the middle. We thought it might have been due to going down the slope, but in the second half it didn’t change.’

With striker Dec Seiden ruled out with a quad injury, Turnbull moved attacking midfielder James Franklyn up front alongside Steve Hutchings.

As a result, it robbed Moneys of their main attacking threat from midfield - there were large gaps between the front two and their colleagues on occasions - and the visitors hardly had a shot at goal in the 90 minutes.

‘I thought they would have done their prep on going man for man on Franko, so by moving him up front I thought it would give us an advantage, but it didn’t work,’ confessed Turnbull.

‘Normally we have Franko, Dec and someone else up front. Franko looked lively, he got a bit of a kicking in the first 20 minutes, but he doesn’t shy away, he doesn’t hide. But playing up front nullified what he’s been doing.’

Horndean won with a Connor Duffin brace and a late third from Zak Willett, who continues to impress after his move from two divisions lower Paulsgrove in the summer.

‘It is massively disappointing. After about an hour we almost conceded the game,’ said Turnbull.

‘We gifted them all three goals - the second came from our free-kick when we tried to play too quick, too square. We shouldn’t even have been defending, let alone conceding. Two or three times from our attacks they almost broke away and scored.

‘I felt we coped with Harry Jackson and Zak Willett quite well. For all the chat about Willett, I don’t think he had Birmy (Harry Birmingham) for toast - Birmy dealt with him quite well.

‘Duffers (Connor Duffin) was magnificent for them. There were two of the best strikers in the league out there and one played marginally better than the other (Steve Hutchings).

‘From a neutral’s point of view - not from a Moneyfields one - it was good to see Duffers showing what he’s capable of. He’s had bad luck with injuries and it’s good to see him getting back to that level.

‘Steve (Hutchings) is only 60 per cent fit and he’s busting a gut out there. Anyone who thinks he doesn’t care should see his ankle afterwards. He got in the car after the game and went back to King’s Lynn where he’s been working.

‘People said no-one played well, but I disagree - Tom Price made some saves that had kept us in it. He’s done that two or three times this season, but no-one notices that when you get beat.’