WESTCLIFF slipped to the foot of the Regional One South East standings after losing 48-14 to Colchester at the Gables.

Westcliff have now been beaten five times in six outings this season.

But head coach Jimmy Rea feels his side are still struggling mentally.

“It was another hard day in the office,” said Rea.

“We were beaten in the scrum against Harpenden and we fixed that issue this week, it was the strongest part of our game.

“Our maul defence was strong but we didn’t stick to the game plan. “We have a team that are still struggling mentally.”

And Rea is certain Westcliff have the talent to be able to bounce back.

“We have the ability in abundance but the understanding is lacking due to the average age of players,” said Rea.

“We haven’t had the knowledge transfer from senior players that retired due to Covid and the players need to learn to trust each other.

“No individual can win a game on their own.

“I tell the lads week in week out if you make a mistake there are 14 other people on the pitch to fix it.

“No-one is perfect.

“We all make mistakes but we are there to help each other, whether that’s on or off the pitch.

“I can say it until I’m blue on the face but unless they believe it we will stay where we are.”

Westcliff - who were relegated last season - will now be looking to get back to winning ways when they head to ninth placed Oundle this weekend.