AFC Telford United have been warned to knuckle down in the wake of a 4-1 thrashing by Nottingham Forest, with boss Rob Smith declaring: “The party’s over.”

The Bucks were very much second best in last night’s friendly at the New Bucks Head against a Forest side which mixed a handful of first team players with several promising youngsters.

And – despite acknowledging the quality of the opposition – Smith made it clear he expected more from his side as the start of the Blue Square North season draws closer.

“It was a bit of a kick up the backside for us, really. I think we probably gave them a bit too much respect,” he declared.

“It’s probably the first time I’ve had to have cross words with the new lads. They’ve seen the other side of me – the party’s over now and we’ve got to start knuckling down.

“They’re a good team, let’s not take it away from them. They’re an exceptional football side and it is very, very difficult for a part-time team to cope with their movement.

“They push the full-backs up and you’re virtually playing against 13 men, really. It was difficult for us but I was disappointed by the first half display and I’ve had a bit of a go at them.”

Minor knock

There were hopes that Forest would include former Manchester United star Andy Cole in their ranks, but he was left behind at the City Ground because of a minor knock.

And his team-mates looked more than comfortable without him, racking up a 3-0 lead by half-time.

That had been extended to four by the time Martyn Naylor popped up with a fabulous consolation goal for the Bucks 10 minutes from time.

“In that first half we gave away some shoddy goals and we weren’t quite at the races,” added Smith.

“In the second half we competed a little bit more, got into them and got tighter all round.

“We stuck at it and got the goal of the game, so we can take something out of it. We deserved it as well after hitting the bar a couple of times.”