Nicky Maynard calls on Mansfield Town fans to stop booing and get behind the side as youngsters feel the pressure

Stags have been booed after some poor recent home displays, even after a win against Chorley, and it’s no surprise their home form is much better, now six unbeaten.

“When playing away, we know that one misplaced pass, a dribble that doesn’t make it or a shot that goes wide doesn’t get criticised,” said Maynard.

“Some of the younger players get disheartened as they are trying to do well for the team and they are not getting the full backing of the supporters, which is understandable in a way as we know where they want to be.

“At the same time we’re all in it together and need to support each other.

“Away from home the fans are more vocal and get behind the lads a lot more and I think that’s why we seem to be doing a lot better away from home than at home.”

Ex West Ham striker Maynard said the boos do not affect him, adding: “I have been there and done that so I am experienced enough to block everything out. It doesn’t bother me. I just concentrate on what I need to do.

“But I have spoken to some of the younger lads and they sometimes feel they need to do too much to try to get the fans back onside when sometimes the easiest thing is to lay it off, carry on your run, and get the ball on the other side rather than being a Messi-like player to try to wow the fans.

“We’ve got a few good young players here and it’s a learning curve for them.

“But with the experience we have in the likes of myself, Bish (Neal Bishop) and Macca (Alex MacDonald) we can always help them along the way.

“We’re in it together and if one player feels down, we all feel down. Then it’s up to us to get them back feeling upbeat.

“We just want the fans to be a bit more supportive. The way I see it, the last time we played Chorley and won 1-0.

“We didn’t play as well as we would have liked but we got the result but we still got booed at the end of the game which I don’t quite understand.

“It’s one of those – do we play well, lose and get cheered off or do we play bad and win? We don’t do it on purpose. We are working hard on the training ground and I like to think there is a lot more to come from this squad.”