CRAWLEY boss Scott Lindsey wants the play-off hopefuls to get nasty at Newport County AFC on Monday after being “too nice” on Good Friday.

The Red Devils slipped from seventh to ninth after goals from Hakeeb Adelakun and substitute Max Biamou gave 10-man Doncaster Rovers their fourth successive win.

Rovers battled for the last 24 minutes a man down after defender Tom Anderson received a straight red card for bringing down the on-rushing Danilo Orsi.

Lindsey felt the game, before a bumper crowd of 5,336, was an ideal opportunity to claim a seventh win in nine matches but was far from happy with the manner of the performance.

He said: “It was a big opportunity, but we didn’t show enough conviction and were fluffy and not aggressive enough at the top of the pitch.

“We were too nice and didn’t take our opportunity to nail our position.

“No disrespect to Doncaster, but I feel given the season we’ve had, if we are serious about being in the play-offs, we have to win.

“The first goal was a very poor one to give away and now we’ve just to show our teeth. I told the players afterwards that they have been lucky in the way other results have fallen.”

Crawley now head to Newport to face and Exiles side aiming to bounce back after defeats to Barrow and Colchester.

Lindsey made it clear what he wants to see from his side, who are a point behind seventh-placed Gillingham with a game in hand.

“We have to recover, regroup, debrief it but we can't play in that manner, we have to try and finish teams off,” he said.

“We are too nice and we have got to be more aggressive. Nice people don't win titles and promotions, nice people end up in mid-table.

“We've got to show our teeth more than we did against Doncaster. We have to put that right.

“We are in a great position and we get another bite of the cherry on Monday. We've got to attack this game.”

Crawley were hugely impressive when they thrashed County 4-1 in Sussex in a September heatwave thanks to goals by Nick Tsaroulla, Adam Campbell (2) and Ben Gladwin.

The Reds have won four of their last five on the road and if they leave Rodney Parade with something to show for their efforts then it would pretty much kill off County’s slim play-off hopes.

Bank Holiday Monday League Two fixtures: Grimsby v Bradford (1pm), Crewe v Forest Green, Harrogate v Gillingham, Mansfield v Accrington, Morecambe v Barrow, Newport County v Crawley, Notts County v Milton Keynes Dons, Stockport v AFC Wimbledon, Sutton v Swindon, Tranmere v Colchester, Walsall v Salford.