Four big talking points from Chesterfield's defeat to Altrincham

Shambolic defending

Another three soft goals shipped after conceding two against Maidenhead and four at Stockport County. You always feel Chesterfield will give teams chances and Altrincham could sense their vulnerability on the counter-attack. It was another late winner as well. Town are having to score at least two goals in a game to get anything and it is not good enough. Pemberton needs to seriously consider changing to a back four because a three-man defence is not working at the moment. It does not mean he can’t re-visit it further down the line but for now it needs to be shelved. It is either that or he needs to bring in some reinforcements. In fairness, it is not all down to the defence as the midfield offer little or no protection and were non-existent at the J Davidson stadium. The Spireites don’t seem to have any resilience about them and they collapse like a pack of cards under pressure.

Pembo’s position

Pressure is mounting on Pemberton from some sections of the Spireites fanbase after six defeats in eight league games which leaves them third bottom of the National League. After the game Pemberton said the buck stops with him and that he takes full responsibility for the poor results. But is a change in manager the answer? Would a new man not face the same problems he is having now? This group of players are all playing for their futures and they really need to take some responsibility and restore a bit of pride in Saturday’s local derby against Notts County.

Finding the net

The annoying part of conceding so many goals is that Chesterfield do find the net in the majority of matches. Scott Boden headed in the Blues’ opener after 13 minutes to give them the lead - his second in as many games. Jordan Cropper notched his second of the campaign with a brilliant strike from distance to make it 2-2. Having said that, Pemberton’s men created several good chances throughout the game only to be denied by a couple of excellent saves by Altrincham goalkeeper Tony Thompson. Cropper hit the underside of the crossbar and Denton’s header was expertly kept out. They could have scored six or seven in the last two games had they been more ruthless.

Corey Addai

The 23-year-old goalkeeper signed on Tuesday on a 28-day loan from Barnsley with Kyle Letheren out ill. For someone who signed at such short notice I thought he did well and was not at fault for any of the goals. His distribution was good and at 6ft 7in he is a big presence. He collected an early corner with ease and looked confident with the ball at his feet. It will be interesting to see how close he can push Letheren for the number one spot in his time at the club.