FRUSTRATED Denis Smith says he will not allow heads to drop despite the latest setbacks to hit the Racecourse.
The Wrexham boss was bemused by the events before, during and after Saturday's 4-2 defeat at Swindon Town - a result which left his side four points away from the League One safety zone.
Despite missing eight senior professionals, Smith was in high spirits on the eve of the trip to the play-off chasers, having guided the Reds to a four-game unbeaten run in the league.
Yet his mood turned on an afternoon when he lost newly capped Welsh international Steve Roberts to a groin injury in the warm-up, then saw his charges squander a 2-0 lead - due in no small part to referee's Darren Drysdale's poor decision-making in Swindon's killer third and fourth goals.
Just to rub salt into the wounds, Wrexham's coach broke down on the way back to North Wales, meaning the dejected Dragons returned home far later than expected.
The events left Smith wondering just when their luck will change. But he has vowed to stand firm.
He said: 'It's very frustrating because the two goals that won it for them should not have stood. The lad charged the ball down with his hand for the third and when you see the fourth again you see it's not a penalty. But what can you do about those decisions?
'Sure, we lost, but I can't ask more from the players - we're already asking so much.
'Sometimes I wonder if I've run over a black cat with everything that's happened. You do think 'is this all worth it'?
'But it is because this is a club worth fighting for. The players have fought all season and we're not going to stop now.'
Smith admits he would like nothing better than to get his side out on to the field during the Easter weekend. But international call-ups to six of his squad means their matches with Brentford and Port Vale have been postponed.
That leaves the Dragons facing a congested endof-season fixture list, with their next game coming on Saturday, April 2 - when Bournemouth visit the Racecourse.
Smith said: 'We were desperate to play the games but the international call-ups have made it impossible. We're now asking a great deal to fit in all these games before the end of the season. It's another problem I didn't want because most of the players we've got out are long-term - so it's ridiculous to expect them to be ready for Bournemouth. All we can do is get on with it.'
One shred of good news for the boss was the performance of Hector Sam against Swindon.
The Trinidad striker set up Ugarte's opener then added the second in a man-of-the-match display which earned the praise of his manager.
Smith said: 'Hector's done great and it means I've got three forwards in form.'
