Barrow letting town, fans and owners down - Maamria

Barrow head coach Dino Maamria said he and his players are letting down everyone connected with the League Two club as they battle against relegation.

The 1-0 home defeat to Gillingham on Saturday was their third in a row and left the Bluebirds in 22nd, level on points with second-bottom Harrogate Town but above them only on goal difference.

Maamria has had four matches in charge since replacing Paul Gallagher to become the club's third boss this season, and he is feeling the pain around Holker Street.

"We are letting the town down, we are letting the fans down, and we are letting the owners down," Maamria told BBC Radio Cumbria. "That has to change."

This is Barrow's sixth season in the EFL since promotion from the National League in 2020, which ended a 48-year exile in non-league football, but a run of two wins in 20 games has put them in serious peril.

Defeat by Gillingham was inflicted by a goal in the 103rd minute, but it came in a match in which the hosts failed to have a single shot on target.

"You get paid to do a proper job," Maamria said. "Yes, mistakes happen in football, but work ethic, commitment, being brave, being on the front foot, those are free wins. You have to turn up in football matches to do that.

"To win games, you have to get after teams. We didn't do that. We have to do much, much better. We're at home, our fans are backing us, and there's no excuse not to get those games."

The lengthy stoppage time in which the Gills scored resulted from a serious injury to Barrow forward Jovan Malcolm.

The 23-year-old was carried off on a stretcher with what the club described as a "nasty injury to his lower leg".