WHEN you are struggling at the bottom of the league, nothing goes for you, and that certainly proved to be the case for the Crows on Tuesday evening. The visitors were leading 2-0, and had a golden opportunity to wrap things up through Jez McMurrough, but

WHEN you are struggling at the bottom of the league, nothing goes for you, and that certainly proved to be the case for the Crows on Tuesday evening.

The visitors were leading 2-0, and had a golden opportunity to wrap things up through Jez McMurrough, but he missed the effort and Aylesbury Vale went on to snatch all three points with a winner two minutes from time.

"We played very well, but got nothing out of it" said Crows chairman Graham Phillips.

"We played some really good football, and deserved to be two or three up at half-time.

"I've never seen the players so gutted at the final whistle.

"They gave everything they could, but individual errors proved costly."

A good first-half performance saw the Crows unlucky not to score more than Dave McMurrough's effort on the stroke of half-time, with both McMurrough brothers and Lee Rogers going close.

Bradley Poole made it 2-0 on the hour, when he headed home from a corner, with the linesman ruling the ball had crossed the line, but from there on it went steadily downhill for the Crows.

A mix-up at the back allowed Vale to pull back a goal in the 65th minute, and a few minutes later the home side were level after substitute Jason Nash lost the ball in midfield.

As Royston pushed forward, looking for their first win since December, Gregg Jackson's cross into the box was met by a defender, and the home side broke out of defence to fire home the winner and stretch the Crows' winless run to 13 games.

As least boss Phil Snowden had the consolation that his side produced a far better performance than the abject display during Saturday's 4-0 loss at Biggleswade United.

The home side hit the woodwork twice before Daniels gave them the lead shortly before the break, and two quick goals - from Goldsmith and Weeden - effectively finished things off early in the second half.

Poole had three attempts to cut the margin, and both Dave and Jez McMurrough went close, but it was home side who wrapped things up late in the game, as Daniels netted his second.

Things do not get any easier for the Crows on Saturday, as the Spartan South Midlands League Premier Division's leakiest defence meets the league's most potent attack, when Hertford Town are the visitors to Garden Walk.

Having transferred from the now defunct Ryman League Division Two last summer, Hertford are currently second in the table, with 102 goals in 33 games.

Among their 21 league wins was a 7-1 hammering of the Crows in November, a game in which they were 6-0 up at half-time.

"They are a good side, and they are paying out good money," said Phillips.

"They've got two good guys up front, and it will be very tough."

The Crows go into the game without Dave McMurrough, Ryan Cannon and skipper Stuart Snowden, who all start suspensions, having been sent off at Oxhey three weeks ago, and Allen Reid is also out of action with an injury.