SWINDON Town manager Richie Wellens says it is time for some of his players to take a look in the mirror after momentum behind their play-off charge has stalled over the past week.

Having only lost twice in 2019 before March, consecutive defeats has seen the growing surge of optimism around the terraces at the County Ground quickly sink away as realism sets in once more.

Town had, at one point, found themselves just four points away from seventh place as they collected important wins against high-flying teams like Forest Green Rovers and Colchester United in the first quarter of 2019.

Wellens seemed to suggest that those games, where his side had not been totally dominant for 90 minutes, were not a true reflection of how the game had indeed turned out and may have given people around the club a false impression of Swindon’s projected finish.

Asking for more from his players, Wellens said: “It’s time for people to look in the mirror because we’ve been on a good run, but some of the games that we’ve won on our good run, we’ve still not been good enough.

"The result sometimes papers over the cracks.

“I know where we’re at and I expect us to produce a positive response (on Saturday) in our performance levels.

“We will start quick (against Port Vale) because the players have had a few home truths after the Stevenage game.

“I want them to react in the right way and I want them to start quickly and on the front foot.”

And with a catalogue of players out of contract at SN1 in the summer, the 38-year-old says he is now turning his attention to more realistically shaping his squad for next season.

Wellens admitted only Lawrence Vigouroux has been offered a contract extension currently, with the Town boss stating he is to use the final 10 games of the season as an extended trial period in which to assess his current crop.

Wellens said: “There are a lot of players who are on trial from now until the end of the season, in terms of everything.

“How do they react when we lose? How do they react when they’re not in the team? Is their body language good? Are they good with their fellow team-mates when they’re not playing? Do they flicker from playing one week and being really positive and then the next week they’re not playing and they can be negative around people?

“I’ve been focused on just results, but now I want to see which players we can take forward and be good people in the dressing room and be good players for us.”