FAVOURABLE possession stats must be used as a building block to work with ahead of tomorrow’s trip to Port Vale, insists Swindon Town player-coach Matt Taylor.

Taylor, 36, was left personally frustrated and annoyed by Town’s four-goal defeat against Carlisle United last Saturday at the Energy Check County Ground – a performance that dropped Richie Wellens’ men to 18th in League Two after 18 games.

Perhaps of greater concern to both Taylor and boss Wellens is that United scored from four of their five shots on target.

Even the one shot that didn’t bulge the back of Lawrence Vigouroux’s net was produced on the counter attack following poor marking and cover from Town’s back three and the midfield.

At the other end of the pitch, Town carved out eight chances – three of which were directed on United’s goal.

Taylor now insists the time has come for Swindon to right their wrongs in front of goal.

He said: “We are not sat here not creating chances – let’s be positive about that.

“We are putting the ball in the right areas. We are just not finishing it off. So that gives us something to work at on the training ground.

“We need to do that, and we will do that. That is not me sat here blaming anyone who is a striker or a forward player. We can all be better at that.

“If we are not converting chances, then we can’t make errors because we can’t give goals away.

“Possession-wise, we have had the majority of it, but we have not made that count.

“The only statistic that matters in any game is the score.”

Former West Ham United player Taylor admitted that he hoped his team-mates were hurting as much as him following Town’s latest defeat.

He also discussed the volume of crosses being directed into the box and the lack of end product from Town’s play on both wings.

Taylor, Ellis Iandolo and Jermaine McGlashan were all frequent crossers of the ball last Saturday, but forward Elijah Adebayo in particular struggled to position himself in the right areas during key moments of play.

Taylor said: “Carlisle were clinical, they took their chances. But if you look at the overall picture of the game, you would not see it as a 4-0 loss, so there are positives.

“But, ultimately, we have been beaten 4-0 at home. I just hope it hurts everyone else as much as it hurts me because I am really disappointed.

“If I am not putting the ball in, then the players in the middle have the divine right to have a pop at me.

“But if the ball is going across the six-yard box and ending up the other side, then we haven’t got enough men in the box, simple as that.

“We need to commit more bodies forward. The manager is being very forthright in that he’s given us the opportunity to get in the box and not sit off.

“I thought we were bold in our play in the first half and in our line-up, but obviously it wasn’t good enough.”