CARL Douglas says Dudley Kingswinford's defeat against Nuneaton was a step backwards for his side.

The director of rugby was once again left ruing player errors and missed tackles as DK fell to a 46-15 defeat at Heathbrook last Saturday.

He said: "We lost on the basis of individual defensive errors. It was a big step backwards for us.

"It is an area we have been working on and I thought we had sorted it out.

"There is only so much we can do. Eventually the players themselves have to put it right. It's not unreasonable to expect each other to make our tackles."

However, Douglas refused to contemplate the thought that DK will end up in a relegation scrap despite sitting second from bottom of National League Three Midlands.

"I think we will continue to progress and get better as the season goes on. With that in mind, I'd hope we wouldn't be involved in a relegation battle.

"We scored three good tries against a team at the top end of the league.

"The key is that we don't then make errors from the restart or miss our defensive tackles. We must drive our personal standards up."

Against Nuneaton, It was DK that secured the first points of the game when full back Nic Adams chipped over the advancing defence, reclaimed his kick and went over.

The lead lasted only four minutes when Nuneaton drew level when they breached the DK line. Moments later they scored again with what was the pick of their tries following a period of possession in the DK 22.

A good DK ruck lead to the home backline running at a disorganised defence. Accurate passing along the line saw Liam Marshall with a clear run to the line to cut the lead to 12-10.

Nuns then scored another excellent try before piling on more misery before the break when the last play of the half saw their inside centre power past several defenders to set up a converted try.

The second half saw territory dominated by Nuneaton and in the third quarter of the game both their half backs scored tries. Wilson converted one and added a penalty to give them a 41-10 lead.

It was at this point that DK had a golden five minutes as James Fildes went over for his first try for the firsts. But it was Nuns that finished the game on a high to go over once more.

DK are set to face Bournville at home in North Mids Plate this Saturday.

Douglas could use the break from league action to make a few change and assess his squad options.