‘Mental strength of players questioned

Describing the defeat as his darkest day in management, Ferguson admitted that he believed that some of his squad aren’t up for the fight.

He said: “We’ve got to try and pick the players up now and work on their mental toughness. I honestly believe some of these guys just aren’t mentally tough enough, possibly because they aren’t playing for one of the bigger teams and aren’t expected to win every week.

“I’ve been a winner throughout my football career no matter who I was playing for or managing that remains my objective. “We’ve tried to instil that belief in the players and if they’re not prepared to push in the right direction then they won’t be here for much longer.

“They’ve been told that and if they don’t want to be here they can come and let me know so we can sort it out.”

Next up is Belfast club Donegal Celtic and Ferguson warned that after that result, nobody is guaranteed a start.

He added: “After that performance nobody can have any complaints if they are left out next week.

“We have three or four players on the verge of making a return from injury and it might be time to give them a run-out.