STEVENAGE boss Dino Maamria admits Sol Pryce’s stoppage time strike at the end of the first half denied him the opportunity to deliver a half-time team talk that could inspire a change in the visitors’ fortunes.

Pryce netted with just a minute of injury time remaining in the first half to re-establish Town’s two-goal lead after Scott Cuthbert steadied the Stevenage’s ship following two early goals for the hosts courtesy of Pryce and Scott Twine.

That goal took the game away from Stevenage, according to Maamria – whose side produced a valiant second half performance to push Town for points right until the final whistle.

The Stevenage boss told the club's twitter page: “I wanted to stay in the game at half time (at 2-1 down). I wanted to change a few things, because I knew we could get back into the game.

“But 3-1 is a mountain to climb.

“We can’t give a club like Swindon, with their fans, two goals in six minutes and expect something from the game.

“We know we shouldn’t pass the first ball backwards, because what teams do from kick-off is put you under pressure.

“We played the ball backwards and they scored from our kick-off.

“We can’t just do that, it was unforgivable.”

Maamria concluded after Tuesday night’s defeat – which earned Town their first back-to-back League Two wins of the season – that his side are reactive instead of proactive.

Now level with seventh placed Exeter City – and four points clear of Wellens’ Town – Maamria accepts his men cannot continue to gift goals away in the first half.

He added: “We can’t give away two goals in six minutes. We’re a reactive team, rather than proactive.

“We keep coming back from losing positions and going behind to get back into games.”