HEREFORD FC manager Pete Beadle has laid the gauntlet down to his players following the Bulls' first league defeat this afternoon.

Beadle's team lost 2-1 to a good Taunton Town side at Edgar Street.

It was Hereford's first league defeat since a 2-0 reverse against Highgate in February.

Beadle felt his side were well off the pace in the first half, but was pleased with their response after the break.  

"Why can they raise the tempo at the start of the second half when we didn't do it in the first half?," asked Beadle.

"It is hard to answer the question at the moment, but we'll talk about it this week and we need to make sure that start at the right tempo in every game.

"I think, with their body language and appetite, they wanted it more.

"It's not a style of play I like but it works brilliantly for them.

"They've won 10 on the bounce now and we didn't cope with it very well in the first half.

"I thought we were excellent in the second half, but for 20 minutes in the first half they wanted it more than we did and it showed in the goals they scored.

"It was just disappointing in the way we gave them away, but I thought  we were excellent in the second half.

"We played from the back, had much better tempo and caused them problems.

"In the end we were unlucky not to get something out of the game."

Beadle feels his team don't seem to want to compete properly at times during matches, which has led to them conceding some sloppy goals. 

"We've got big lads at the back who can deal with aerial balls," he said.

"But in the second half we dealt with every single one of them.

"Fir the first goal, the lad has managed to get a flick on and Joel [Edwards] has not stayed with him.

"It was disappointing for the first goal and a little bit for the second one.

"But it was one way traffic after the break."

After losing to Highgate, Hereford won all of their remaining league games before losing to Morpeth in the FA Vase Final.

And another long unbeaten run is the challenge Beadle has now set his players.

"We've done fantastic to go 26 games unbeaten, we've lost against a good side who do what they do and have been on a fantastic run, but we've matched them in the second half," said Beadle.

"Now it's about how we bounce back and I want the attitude that we showed in the second half from now until the end of the season.

"If we get that, we are going to win more than we lose."