GERARD Jones has been cursing his luck after the Eccleshill United head coach’s reign started with five consecutive defeats.

His team have been playing good football but not getting the rub of the green, while his options regarding team selection have been limited.

Many of Eccleshill’s players are students of the Richmond International Academic and Soccer Academy (RIASA) who are foreign nationals, mainly from America.

Jones said: “This is my first senior management role and it’s been very difficult for me because I’ve come in at a time the best players are not available.

“A big part of the first-team squad is the RIASA boys and a lot of them had gone back to America for Christmas and New Year. They want to be with their families and you can fully understand that.

“When we went to Louth Town last Saturday the first thing their manager said to me was ‘are all your players back?’, so it’s common knowledge. Everyone knows we are weak at the start of the season and around Christmas when we lose the RIASA players.”

Fortune on the pitch has also deserted the Eagles, who have suffered defeats by the odd goal in four of those five losses. And Jones believes the Eagles were the better side on at least three occasions.

He said: “To be honest the team play was outstanding at Louth, even better than the home game against Hemsworth. In terms of possession, we are dominating games but we have conceded from set-pieces and not taken our chances.

“I had a plan to improve possession when I came in and we work on that in training. I can’t see teams breaking us down but we concede goals from corners.

“We’ve been unfortunate not to score because opposition keepers have been making great saves and endless times the defenders have just cleared. That is something else we are working on in training – better finishing and to stop getting done at set-pieces.”