By James Barrett

Carshalton Athletic boss Ian Hazel remained upbeat despite watching his side succumb 3-1 to high-flying Wealdstone on Saturday.

The result, coupled with Cray Wanderers winning at Lowestoft Town, means the Robins have slipped to second from bottom in the Ryman Premier, but Hazel looked on the bright side at full-time.

“This was always going to be a difficult game for us but I felt the lads acquitted themselves well,” he said.

“If we play like we did today against teams not challenging for promotion, I'm confident we’ll pick up points.”

Defender Adriano Moraes brought Carshalton level in the first-half with a stunning volley from a corner, his first goal for the club, but the hosts grabbed two scrappy goals in the second half to knock the wind out of the Robins’ sails.

“We bolstered our midfield to stifle their typical passing style. It worked up to a point although Dean Snedker did make three great saves to keep us in it at 0-0,” Hazel added.

“Their lad looked offside for their second but, once we did go 2-1 down, it was a case of ‘do we stick or twist?’. We bought on three attack-minded subs but Wealdstone shut up shop well.”

Carshalton host Whitstable Town in the FA Trophy third round proper this weekend.