The Blackpool Gazette’s Andy Moore caught up with Joint Head Coach Chris Briers in midweek. [Reproduced courtesy of the Gazette].
Team boss Chris Briers insists Fylde RFC won’t panic and will fight to end their slump in National Two North. Saturday’s 36-33 home defeat by struggling Scunthorpe extended their winless run to six games and was Fylde’s fifth straight loss in 2026.
Two tries in the first five minutes of the second half left Fylde 25 points ahead, only to concede 28 without reply. The victory, only their third all season, lifted Scunthorpe off the bottom of the table.
Joint-head coach Briers told The Gazette: “It’s hard to say what was the cause on Saturday. We looked relatively comfortable without necessarily being at our best. The first half was okay, we were doing what was needed and I don’t know if we took our foot off the gas. Credit to Scunthorpe, who had the character to turn it round. They clearly haven’t given up on the season and will fight to the end.
“We have to realise that we haven’t become a bad side overnight. Two of the recent defeats were against the top two and we played pretty well in both those games. We aren’t panicking but we do need to get our mojo back and keep our belief in ourselves because the ability is there.”
Lady luck isn’t helping Fylde where injuries are concerned, having lost Danny Cassidy during the first half on Saturday after going into the game without captain Toby Harrison.
“Danny has hurt his leg and it isn’t clear from the X-ray what he has done,” explained Briers. “We thought we’d weathered the storm with Toby but now he has injured his shoulder and it looks like he will be out a bit longer.”
Of the five teams to have defeated Fylde since the turn of the year, only unbeaten Sheffield have done so by more than three points. In four of the six games since their last win, Fylde have been denied by points conceded in the final few moments.
It’s a pattern easily spotted but difficult to remedy and Briers added: “We need to stay composed when other teams have a purple patch. We’re doing that for large parts of every game but we need to do it in the moments that really matter.
“When the other side’s tails are up, you have to fight not to concede points. Hopefully what happened on Saturday will bring the best out of us. We mustn’t let anything on the outside affect us or worry about what other people are saying about us.”
With seven games to play, there’s plenty of time for Fylde to end the season on a positive note.
Saturday brings a testing trip to third-placed Tynedale (2pm), another team to have beaten them by a few points this season.