HARRY Kewell insists his Latics players are well aware of how far their standards slipped against Scunthorpe as they look to bounce back at Exeter this weekend.

Oldham had won three games in a week in three different competitions ahead of facing the Iron, who had lost their last eight in all competitions ahead of Saturday’s trip to Boundary Park.

But second-half goals from Jacob Bedeau and Kevin Van Veen ended the visitors’ rotten run and saw supporters ask more questions of a start to the season that sees Latics 20th in League Two ahead of the long trip to St James Park.

“We’re a team. We win together, we lose together, we take it on the chin,” Kewell said.

“They know that we let things slip on Saturday.

“Now we have to regroup and it won’t be an easy game at Exeter on Saturday but we’ve got to go down there and try and get something.

“The competition (in the squad) is great, it’s getting better and it’s important for us every player knows their role, works hard and competes.

“The players just weren’t on their game against Scunthorpe.

“With the results that we’ve had it was a good opportunity, but we just didn’t have it.

“It’s a shame but now we go back the drawing board and rethink our strategy and we go again on Saturday.”

Kewell admitted that he saw alarm bells in the first half against Scunthorpe as the sides went into the break goalless.

The Australian then handed out some words of warning at the interval but they fell on deaf ears, much to his frustration.

“With the way we’d played I think we all felt as a staff, and maybe the players, we got a little bit comfortable,” the Latics head coach said.

“We were driving them, we were pushing them but at half-time I could see what was happening and I told them ‘you’ve got away with the first half. You haven’t worked hard enough, you’re slow on the ball, the passing is slow, you’re trying to play killer passes when the simple pass is on’.

“When we looked dangerous we stopped doing it. I told them they had to concentrate to try and get something out of the game.

“It just didn’t happen.”