Jack Wilshere was visibly downbeat after Luton Town’s miserable away trip to the One Call Stadium on Sunday.

It was an afternoon to forget for the Hatters and enough was enough for some Luton fans as they started to file out of stadium with their team 5-0 down before an hour had been played.

Braces from Nathan Moriah-Welsh and Jon Russell sandwiched a Louis Reed goal as Mansfield Town ran riot over the promotion hopefuls. Despite a penalty and a late impressive goal, the Hatters’ efforts couldn't shift the narrative of a one-sided afternoon in League One.

Wilshere has issued an apology to the travelling fans who headed home disappointed with their first league loss since March.

Jack Wilshere during the Sky Bet League 1 match against Luton Town FC at the One Call Stadium, 30 Aug 2026, Photo credit Chris & Jeanette Holloway / The Bigger Picture.media

placeholder image — Jack Wilshere during the Sky Bet League 1 match against Luton Town FC at the One Call Stadium, 30 Aug 2026, Photo credit Chris & Jeanette Holloway / The Bigger Picture.media

“We knew what we were coming into here and we weren’t there in the first half,” a downbeat Wilshere told the media at full-time. “It has been a while since we have lost a game.

“There are ways to lose and that wasn’t one of them. We are not going to win every game but we cannot accept that, not if we have ambition.”

The hefty defeat comes right after Luton were knocked out of the Carabao Cup by Chelsea on Thursday night. The match at Stamford Bridge ended 2-0 to the Premier League side.

“I would like to apologise to the fans. Their anger should be at me, that’s fine. They have supported us a lot and we have built a really big connection with them. We lost on Thursday to Chelsea but it was the right way to lose. We didn’t show a fight today and it is hard to accept,” Wilshere continued.

Luton Town have been named among the favourites to go up to the Championship and Nigel Clough himself has backed them to be top competitors for automatic promotion.

Wilshere, aware of the pressure surrounding the Hatters this season, had no positives to reflect on after a staggering 5-2 defeat to Stags.

“We cannot accept that level of performance,” he said. “We’ve played games like this where we have matched the opponents and won the fight and we never did that today. We didn’t earn the right to have the ball, we never had the momentum.”

Luton’s next challenge will see them face Stockport County on Wednesday, while Stags are on the road against Reading.