PHIL Brown conceded his side were not good enough against Crewe Alexandra at Gresty Road tonight as Swindon Town slipped to their third League Two defeat of the season.

Promising winger Charlie Kirk struck for Crewe on 30 minutes when his effort fortuitously rebounded off the covering Joe Romanski after Luke McCormick got a hand to the youngster’s shot before crossing the line.

It proved to be the game’s only goal as Brown’s men returned home empty-handed having been restricted to only three shots on target out of their 10 attempts.

The performance, which dropped Town down to 11th in League Two, frustrated Brown – who afterwards admitted he’s ‘alarmed’ by the lack of consistency displayed by a number of individuals on the pitch.

He added: “I’m disappointed. We’re lacking consistency with some of the individuals that we’re dealing with, and it’s quite alarming.

“That has to be put right, it’s as simple as that. And we will have to work on it on the training ground.

“I was expecting a performance after travelling to Morecambe and Yeovil and picking up wins.

“We didn’t start the game as well as I thought we would do, they came out of the traps fairly quick and consequently they got their noses in front.

“That final third is causing me a lot of concern. One or two players I’ve added to the football club and one or two players that have been at the football club seem to be freezing in the final third of the game.

“Because of that, that final chance is not falling to us – and that’s of great concern.”

The performance echoed Swindon’s uninspiring show during the club’s 0-0 draw against Oldham Athletic at the County Ground on Saturday.

Keshi Anderson’s shot from a tight angle late in the second half was all that goalkeeper Ben Garratt had to deal with while Marc Richards lost possession multiple times after receiving the ball having initially created time and space.

Crewe’s options on the wing also contributed to Swindon’s downfall as Luke Woolfenden and Joe Romanski often struggled to cut out both options on either side of the pitch.

“To a certain extent there are echoes of Saturday’s game (goalless draw against Oldham) about our performance,” admitted Brown.

“But that didn’t apply necessarily when they had the ball. Their wide players caused us problems, so we needed our full backs to defend properly.

“Luke (Woolfenden) and Joe (Romanski) had a hard time regarding what the opposition were asking them. I had to make changes because of that.

“Steven (Alzate’s) shot at the end is a moment where you’re looking to get something out of the game.

“You have to apply yourself, and I don’t think we applied ourselves in the right manner – mentally I’m talking about.

“They had their chances as well, and Luke (McCormick) pulled off a couple of good saves.

“We weren’t good enough tonight, and that is the part that concerns me.”