ON paper it looked like a drubbing.

But AFC Totton boss Louis Langdown insists the Stags’ 5-0 defeat at Taunton Town yesterday was nowhere near as one-sided as the scoreline suggests.

The difference, he said, was the finishing.

Whereas Ross Staley (2), Craig Veal (2) and Matt Wright gobbled up their chances, making it nine straight victories for the Peacocks in the Southern One South & West, third-to-bottom Totton were nowhere near as clinical.

“It’s unfortunate,” said Langdown. “We had five chances, they had five chances. They took theirs, we didn’t.

“Taunton’s officials and fans told us how well we’d played.

“If you’d come in for the last half-hour, you’d have thought it was Totton leading 5-0.

"We played some really good football and we’ve lost, but we can’t be too despondent. There were lots of positives.

"Taunton will finish second in this league without a doubt. They’ve got the finances and resources.”

The same cannot be said of Totton, but Langdown is doing his best to keep the squad fresh on a tight budget.

Loanee Ben Cooper has returned to parent club AFC Bournemouth, Mitchell Hunt has joined Andover Town and striker Dan Munday is heading back to the Wessex League.

On the plus side, talented full-back Connor York has extended his loan stay from Bournemouth and been joined at the Testwood Stadium by Cherries teammate Curtis Young who recently had a spell at Bashley.

“Curtis only played 30 minutes and got man-of-the-match,” said Langdown. “He’s hit the bar and should have had a goal and three assists but, unfortunately, the scoreline doesn’t reflect that.

“We’ve outplayed Taunton in parts, but they took their chances and it’s made it look like a drubbing when, in reality, it wasn’t.”

*Salisbury lost 2-1 at home to North Leigh. Justin Bennett put the Whites in front, but two-goal George Seacole turned the game on its head. Leigh’s Matt Sysum was red-carded late on for bringing down Tommy Wright.