Sheffield Eagles: Boss Mark Aston tells his side not to get too frustrated after third defeat on bounce

The Eagles face an early test of nerve after slipping to another defeat against Toulouse at the weekend, despite being only two points down at the interval.

Aston’s side are propping up the Betfred Championship, with a tough run of fixtures which include Featherstone, London and Toronto in their next three outings.

Whilst Aston expected his new look outfit to take time to adjust, he will be concerned that his upcoming opposition includes three of the current top four in the division.

The Eagles chief, who experienced a similar start last season before leading a strong revival, has called on his youthful group not to get frustrated by the early setback, confirming he has seen enough to suggest they won’t get cut adrift.

“The key is not getting frustrated,” Aston said.

“We have to take the frustration away behind the scenes. We have to keep our heads down, keep working hard. They key to all of this is having the work ethic and attitude. If you do then you have a chance of achieving whatever you want. There will be disappointment at times, but we have to stop beating them up.

“I have to hold back on them and just try and get them to relax. If you carry screaming the same message, sometimes it doesn’t work.”

“We remain positive,” Aston added. “We work hard on certain things and then we get back to where we want to be.”

The Eagles could have easily picked something up in round one after a narrow two point defeat at Dewsbury, whilst they were right in the game going into the final quarter against Halifax before conceding a quick-fire brace of tries.

Despite being on the receiving end of a 50-6 defeat in the South of the France, they trailed just 8-6 at the interval.

Aston knows that points are needed, but has been buoyed by “patches” of good play which has given him long term confidence in his young side.

“I am comfortable at the moment,” he maintained.

“I think we’ll be fine at the end. That needs to be sooner rather than later. We are aware we have a tough month. At the back of that we need some results and performances.”