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Fri, Mar

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Jason Scotland fears the Barnsley fans may start to turn on the side if they continue to lose heavily.

The 34-year-old Trinidad and Tobago international scored his first goal of the season in the 5-1 loss at home to Watford on Saturday which followed a 4-0 defeat to Wigan, a 5-1 loss to Southampton and a 5-2 beating at Blackburn.

Scotland said: "The majority of the fans are giving the gaffer time. They know we have turned it round before and we can do it again. But they don't want to be getting heavy defeats week in week in, week out. The staff feel it, the players feel it and I think the fans feel it too.

"If we give it a good go and lose 1-0 then that is different but we are letting in too many goals. Maybe we have let ourselves down in a few games and maybe we can do a bit more. We need to cut out the silly goals we have been conceding. We need to be compact and try to eradicate those silly mistakes.

"Last season we were night at the back most of the time but we haven't been as night this season and we've had a lot of heavy defeats. It's hard to put your finger on why it's changed. We've got most of the same players and the same manager but we don't get the same results."

Scotland is the oldest player in the squad now Mike Pollitt has left the club and says he sees his role to keep his colleagues upbeat. He said: "Players in the dressing room are not happy. They are pointing fingers. But, as a senior player, I have tell the boys that if we get three points against Leicester everything changes. We still have a chance to turn it around."

Manager David Flitcroft said Scotland, who missed the pre-season trip to Spain due to a visa problem, was not fit enough to start until he played several under 21 and behind-closed-doors matches before completing his first 90 minutes for Barnsley against Watford.

Scotland said: "It is frustrating for any player when you're not getting a sniff and things aren't going right on the pitch. I was thinking 'do I need to go and knock on the gaffer's door?'

"But I never went in his office and kept plugging away in training. Those games got me up to speed and I thought I did alright on Saturday. I felt good being back playing but to lose was disappointing. We were under the cosh so I didn't get the service I would have liked. I was getting the best of the defenders most of the time."