McCombe denied the chance to be Stags’ hero in late capitulation

McCombe was given a rare start and rewarded boss Paul Cox with his first two goals for the club to twice put the Stags in charge against fellow strugglers Stanley.

But nervy Mansfield then conceded twice in stoppage time in a nightmare finish in which they booed from the pitch after a 12th League game without victory.

McCombe said: I was absolutely gutted. I was glad to be back in the side, and to get two goals as well was brilliant. But, as a defender, not to see the game out was really disappointing.

“You could see us getting a bit anxious near the end and sitting back. That’s what happens when you are on a bad run.

“I have been in teams near the top of the table and that doesn’t happen. It just shows the position we are in at the moment.

“I thought we had defended quite well overall. So to end up letting three goals in was disappointing and something that needs addressing.

“You could hear the fans getting anxious as they wanted a victory as well and they have gone away disappointed. It was not a great day for us.

“To be leading 2-1 in stoppage time and losing 2-1 is something that shouldn’t happen in football.”

He added: “We just need to get back to the training ground and work harder.

“At least we haven’t got to wait until next Saturday as we have Rochdale away on Thursday and we need to start getting some wins on the board.

“We now have Rochdale and Cheltenham away. Rochdale are a good side and Cheltenham have been up there in the play-offs in the last two years. They are two tough games but they are usually the better games as, if we can beat Rochdale, we can beat anyone in this league.”