TOM Killick described as "a source of great frustration" Poole Town's bottom-half position in Southern League South - but stressed his team would not give up on a play-off spot.

A run of six games without a win dropped Dolphins from eighth in the table and four points outside the play-off places to 13th - 13 points adrift of the top five.

In a congested table, Killick's side are only four points above the relegation zone.

Poole on Saturday travel to 10th-place Tiverton (3pm), who on Tuesday claimed their first league win at Ladysmead since November 3.

Killick told the Daily Echo: "We had expectations to be fighting at the top end of the league, so the position we find ourselves in is a source of great frustration to everyone connected to the club – the players, management, directors and supporters alike.

"There is pressure and disappointment but the only people who can change the situation is us.

"We put ourselves in this position and need to fight to get ourselves out of it. The play-offs are looking a very difficult proposition but we will never give up.

"The games against Salisbury, Weymouth, Gosport and Dorchester were all positive performances. We only managed three points from those fixtures, which is a poor return.

"The players can only control the performances. Yes, there had been one or two things we could do better but I believe in the past four games the players gave everything and their performances, on the whole, had been positive.

"I still feel we have not got the belief we need in our ability, which is inevitable when we are not getting good results.

"If we can get a couple of positive results, the confidence will be enhanced and with the ability in the group, we can become the force we want to be."

Defenders Will Spetch and Jordan Alawode-Williams both had to be substituted due to injuries in the defeat against Dorchester on Tuesday.

Killick hopes Spetch can recover from a tight hamstring, but Alawode-Williams remains a doubt after suffering a concussion.

The trip to Tiverton comes too soon for stricken skipper Jamie Whisken.

On his stretched defensive resources, Killick said: "It is a worry going forward because we have gone from a position where we looked good in terms of numbers to now suddenly where we seem to be picking up injuries.

"The aches and pains players have will always be exasperated when you are losing games but most teams are in a similar boat and we can't feel sorry for ourselves.

"In my view, we still have a powerful and decent group of players.

"We cannot mope around, we need to go into the game with a positive outlook.

"It will be a difficult match but, the way the season has panned out, we have tended to play better against the better teams.

"On paper it is a tough fixture and, for me, that is a positive."