Ian Holloway felt that Swindon Town lacked belief in what they were doing as they were thumped 4-0 by York City.
Swindon were stunned by two goals from outside the area in the first half, one a stunner from Alex Newby, the other a deflected drive from Ollie Banks.
But there was nothing fortunate about the result, York streaked clear and added another two from Newby and Ollie Pearce after Mitch Clark got himself foolishly sent off.
Holloway said that without their main leaders, Ollie Clarke and Ryan Tafazolli, Swindon failed to handle it when things went wrong against York.
He said: "It's a really tough one to take. We started so well. Our plan was to disrupt their passing, they're very good at it, Scott always does it, and this team he's taken over was renowned for it.
"But in the first ten, 11, 12 minutes, we must have won it back five times, and deserved to, and probably no one else has done that to him.
"We weren't clinical enough. We didn't finish them off. We needed a goal. I nudged Gavin [Gunning], and said we needed to take a chance here.
"The first time they got out, I felt the confidence drained out of my lot, and it rose into them, and then they pulled out a strike that is probably as good as you will see.
"That just tipped the scales. You could almost feel it, you could almost see it with my team. We were leaderless at times today.
"What we've got to do is believe in what we were doing, and I didn't see that after they broke through us before they scored.
"People weren't talking about where to go and what to do. They don't know each other well enough, so we have to sort our mentality out.
"We capitulated in the end with ten men."
However, Holloway was frustrated about how York conducted themselves when Clark was sent off for pushing Ollie Banks to the floor.
He said: "I tried to do my job to stop my player, who supposedly pushed this bloke so hard he hit the deck. How he did it that violently, I do not know, being as big as he is.
"I tried to stop Mitch from gettig in the middle, and then I get booked for it. I didn't even say a word. I don't understand because the fourth official should be doing that, not me.
"I think I can [complain about the red card]. Their manager said something just before that I thought was completely wrong. Trying to win a foul, you get a foul, you shouldn't win one, should you?
"Yet again, five people run round the ref, throwing their arms in the air. Managers have to hold their hands up and stop this absolute garbage.
"I don't like seeing that. I don't like their players running round my player, making it look like he's done it deliberately, and then he gets a red card. And then they're goading him on the way off as well."
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