Deeside Dragons have been guilty of repeating the ‘same old mistakes’ this season, according to Marc Lovell.

Fans of the struggling Flintshire club have endured a frustrating season as their side have failed to find any consistency since their relegation to the Laidler Conference last term.

The new year fixture schedule has failed to herald an upturn in form, with the Dragons crashing to a 7-4 home defeat to mid-table rivals Bradford Bulldogs last week.

And with his ailing side now 18 points adrift of league leaders Widnes Wild, player-coach Lovell says the club must count the cost of points dropped from winning positions this season.

He said: “So many times over the course of the season we’ve been punished for a lack of discipline in games.

“There’s only so many times you can say the same thing to the players, before you start wondering if these things are being taken on board.

“Defensive mistakes and lapses in concentration have been our downfall in so many games, it’s become a bad habit.

“Against Hull we found ourselves 4-2 up and in total control of the game, before we switched off for a four-minute period and we let them score four.

“Losing that game was just the latest in a season of frustrating defeats. I added it up the other day and we’ve dropped something like 14 points from winning positions.

“If we’d held on in those games - we’d be challenging near the top of the division instead of stuck in mid-table.”

The Dragons will be confident of a swift return to winning ways in Sunday’s home clash with basement side Blackburn Hawks.

The struggling Lancashire outfit have lost all 20 league games this term, including three separate defeats to the Dragons.

Lovell added: “It’s a big chance for us to bounce back quickly and I expect us to with a big performance.

“We know there’s the quality in our locker room to challenge in this division, but it’s a matter of cutting out the silly errors in our play.”

Widnes Wild start their weekend double-header at Coventry Blaze on Saturday, when Altrincham Aces host Telford Tigers and Bradford head to Hull Jets.

Widnes will host Sheffield outfit Senators on Sunday, while Hull visit Telford.