KIDDERMINSTER Harriers' manager Ian Britton is urging his players to get back to the kind of form they produced last season when they made a strong bid to reach the Nationwide League Division Three play-offs.

After opening this term's campaign with encouraging wins against Mansfield Town and Darlington his side have slipped down the table by going four matches without a victory.

Britton said: "We haven't played very well all season. I don't think we have even when we beat Darlington 2-0 away.

"All you can do is go on and on and hopefully it will come.

"We have still got the same nucleus of players. I haven't changed anything in a sense of the way we want to play, so it's down to the players.

"You are hoping that the players who are here are going to do it for you."

Britton believes Harriers will win their 'fair share' of games, but wants his troops to stop handing their opponents the initiative during the closing stages of matches.

He said: "Against Cheltenham we were 1-0 up and lost 2-1 in the last 10 minutes.

"Against Oxford we were one each and we missed a penalty in the last five minutes and against Bristol Rovers they scored a 70th minute goal and we lose three points.

"Teams that will go into the play-offs or those who will be challenging will take points out of those type of games."

Britton is certainly leaving no stone unturned in his efforts to produce a winning formula.

Loan players are already becoming a key part of his strategy with midfielders Adam Murray and Lloyd Dyer being the latest recruits from Derby County and West Bromwich Albion respectively.

Striker Andy Bishop has also had his loan spell from Walsall extended by a further month.

The 20-year-old's initial loan deal was due to have expired this week.

Front-runner Matt Lewis has joined Dr Martens League Premier Division outfit Hinckley United on a month's lone while Harriers have turned down an approach from Redditch United to take defender Lee Ayres on loan.