SWINDON Town manager David Flitcroft conceded that mistakes ultimately cost his side as they fell to a second heavy home defeat in succession.

Despite a bright start to the game, in which Town had Barnet under the cosh, a mix-up at the back between Chris Robertson and goalkeeper Lawrence Vigouroux saw Shaquile Coulthirst score a tap-in in the 10th minute.

That was further compounded six minutes later when skipper Olly Lancashire fouled Almeida Santos in the box and Jamal Campbell-Ryce converted the resulting penalty.

Town made it to half time to regroup but when Donal McDermott received a straight red card for a lunge on David Tutonda five minutes into the second half, the floodgates opened, with Coulthirst completing his hat-trick.

Luke Norris headed a late consolation goal for Swindon before Barnet were also reduced to 10 men, Andre Blackman given his marching orders for an off-the-ball incident with Paul Mullin, but Flitcroft admits his side can’t keep gifting the opposition goals.

“You break the game down and the first mistake, the mix-up, is not something I would expect from an experienced player and Vigs’ form has been fantastic,” he said.

“It was a complete mix-up. The important thing to do when you go a goal down is to stay in the game and then to concede two or three minutes after by something you can avoid.

“It’s a penalty decision that is just. You can’t do it now. You know you can’t do it.

“Again, the experienced young player out there, it’s not as though it’s a young player who has done it.

“Straight away, you are 2-0 down and your game plan goes out of the window.

“The sending off, I have seen it and the referee has got it right.

“It’s a lunge and it’s aggressive and it’s not a straight leg but you can’t do it.

“You’re not going to win football matches if you make the type of mistakes we have done and you don’t commit and concentrate on what your job is as an individual.

“We haven’t done that today and it’s not that I have not seen it coming; we’ve done a lot of work on trying to be solid and trying to dominate them and in the early stages, we did.”

Having lost to Crawley Town 3-0 the previous week in front of the County Ground crowd, few could be justified for being concerned that a trend was setting in.

However, Flitcroft believes that the manner of the defeats were very different but says neither are acceptable.

“I think the two are different,” he added.

“Last week, I was trying to chase the game and almost go 4-2-4 cost us the game.

“We were 1-0 down but still in the game. The substitutions gave them the impetus last week.

“When I strip down the opportunities they have had from the way that we capitulated, that’s unacceptable.

“I’ve got to look at that. I’m responsible for the team, the shape and substitutions and we’ve not got it right now on two occasions.

“I guarantee we will be working hard to get it right and we will get it right.”