WILL Croker branded Bournemouth's loss at Hornets "a full-on kick in the guts" and admitted his team had been "inefficient and ineffective".

Lions' hopes of securing play-off rugby took a substantial hit after they succumbed 36-27 against a side who had started the day bottom of South West Premier.

Defeat meant the Chapel Gate side dropped from second to fourth, meaning they narrowly trail Maidenhead and Newton Abbot in the race for second place.

Reflecting on a difficult day in Weston-super-Mare, Croker told the Daily Echo: "It was a body blow and not a glancing body blow either, it was a full-on kick in the guts. But it is still very much in our hands. If we win the rest of our matches, we will finish second.

"That said, we were really disappointed. There's no getting away from the fact we lost to a team who had been bottom of the table on a pitch which should have suited us.

"We were disappointed with our first-half performance but we were very much in the game and I felt our superiority would tell. But we did things which were slightly frustrating.

"We had spent a lot of the week talking about transitions between turnover and defence and when we won the ball how quickly we could develop play to challenge them, and we just didn't execute it.

"They always say there is no such thing as a bad kick, only a bad chase, and it's true. We did kick loosely at times but you can make up for that with a good chase and we were slow across the ground.

"The game plan was right and we had plenty of chances to score but what we didn't do was keep it for long enough periods and that was because when we got to the ruck our clear out wasn't effective and we weren't carrying with purpose.

"We made ourselves easy to play against which is not what we're known for. It wasn't a lack of effort or desire, it was more that we were inefficient and ineffective and that's what we have to address."

Alex Sutherland's converted try handed Lions the early initiative but Hornets responded with scores from Mick Somers and Baily Jackson.

Grant Hancox hit back with a penalty before adding the extras following Harry Davis's try.

However, a Jordan Humphris penalty and a Charlie Carter try, which was converted, put Hornets 22-17 up.

After the break Hancox kicked a penalty but in the latter stages of the game, a couple of home tries killed off the visitors' hopes.

Adam MacDonald grabbed his first league score in the dying embers but it was too little, too late.

Lions: Hancox, Davis, Kirkpatrick, Sutherland, Roberts, J O’Hehir, Hardcastle, Jenkinson, Fraser, Firetto, MacDonald, Hennings, Warwick, Sharp, Manning. Replacements: Carkeet, Gleadowe, Hughes.