Misfiring Rocks were alarmingly lacklustre in the 2-0 reverse at home to promotion-chasing Dartford at Nyewood Lane last week, leaving them inexorably to a season concluding with relegation.

Birmingham labelled the Rocks “boring” after the defeat and with places in the squad up for grabs ahead of next term’s challenges, both bosses have asked their charges — especially the attackers — to step up their efforts for the remainder of the season.

Dartford didn’t have to be at their best to win and the three points took them to the top of the table. And the frustration from both Howell and Birmingham was evident as they assessed the game with one eye on the trip to face the Hawks at the Enclosed Ground.

Birmingham suggested his strikers were so impotent that the opposing defenders could easily have had their minds on their summer holidays as they comfortably coped with the home side’s attempts to score.

He added: “I thought the back four and the two holding midfielders were absolutely fantastic. People get all the glory when they score a winning goal but against Dartford, me and Jamie could have played against out front four; they were too predictable we were boring going forward, we didn’t ask questions of them in the second half.

“Their back five would have gone home and booked their holidays up in the second half — we didn’t ask enough questions and to be honest we didn’t look like scoring and that is a big, big concern. The huff and puff and endeavour is there, but the quality isn’t there yet, especially in and around the final third. I’m gutted, I’m fed up with hearing, ‘you ain’t that bad are you?’ We are doing okay but okay is not good enough for the situation we are in!”

Howell cut an equally frustrated figure as he summed up the poor performance that left the Rocks second from bottom and seemingly resigned to their fate.

He said: “We are definitely looking to build for next season. To be fair I thought some of the players were excellent and put in a really good shift but you can’t put it any other way than we are struggling to provide an attacking threat.

“That’s not to just dig out the strikers because it’s a collective game but fundamentally, if we don’t have a lot of shots and crosses we are not going to win many games of football — and that, in nutshell, is why we are not winning games!”