PAUL Cox has told his Barrow AFC players there can be no hiding places as they prepare for their first home game of the National League season.

The Bluebirds host FC Halifax Town at Holker Street tonight on the back of an opening-day defeat to Dagenham and Redbridge on Saturday (7.45pm kick-off).

That was a game in which AFC failed to find their feet in the first half and, despite a late rally where Dan Jones brought them back to within a single goal at 2-1, could have little argument with the final result.

Cox knows there is no time to regroup before the Shaymen come to town this evening, with Woking following on Saturday, and then away trips to both Solihull Moors and Dover Athletic next week.

He wants his players to develop a strong mind-set quickly, and said: “I've said to the players there is no hiding place. There's no hiding place for a manager, no hiding place for players. I've said to them, going back to something that was probably a little bit ridiculed when I said I needed a few biters and scratchers, I think a lot of people took that the wrong way.

“What I mean is, I need some really strong characters today and going forward who, when you go 1-0 down, have an understanding and have a confidence, have a nastiness about them to make sure you get yourselves back in the back.

“What I want to see now, what I've asked of the players, is for them to develop a mentality and to develop a strength of mind that we learn from Saturday and we springboard from it.”

Saturday's match at Dagenham was the first time Barrow have fielded their first-choice 11 for this season.

Full-back Jack Barthram was only brought in a week ago, and his only previous appearance had been among a side made up predominantly of trialists at Witton Albion in the final game of pre-season.

Likewise, striker Adi Yussuf had spent only seven days with the Bluebirds before Saturday's match-up, featuring only in the 1-0 win at Stockport, where he scored the only goal.

That lack of pre-season stability means Cox is still trying to get his players to know each other and to know him, and he said: “It has been an education since the new players have come in. All we’ve tried to do, as with last season, is get them into a routine, an understanding. We don’t try to complicate it, we have an understanding of when we are in possession and more so when we are out of possession.

“The one thing that disappointed us today was our structure and organisation without the ball. We came here last season and beat a very similar side 4-1. We knew what we were doing going forward, we knew what we were doing defensively.

“There has to be a mind-set developing now with the players. It’s not easy when players are coming in so late, because there has to be an understanding, there has to be some telepathy, of roles and responsibilities when we are in possession and out of possession.

“We’ve got to learn very quickly.”