Macleay Valley Mustangs coach Russell Lardner has remained upbeat despite his side suffering their first loss of the Group Three Rugby League season on Saturday.
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The Wingham Tigers fought back from a half-time deficit to claim a 24-22 victory on the road.
Lardner admits the first loss of the season will serve as a wake up call but claims the Mustangs beat themselves.
"It wasn't a terrible loss, we made a lot of mistakes and weren't at our best," Lardner told the Argus.
"Despite losing, I am not too concerned because we were our own worst enemy out there and a lot went the way of Wingham."
While Lardner wants to see improvement in his side when they travel to face the Port City Breakers this Sunday, he said the side still had a lot to be proud of.
"There were still heaps of positives to take out of the loss," Lardner said.
"They were pressuring our line for the majority of the game and our defence held firm most of the time.
"It was a very tiring game but we were up for it."
Macleay Valley started the game on the front foot, as they opened the scoring inside the first 10-minutes through backrower Tyler Roberts.
The Mustangs added two more tries before the break to take a 16-6 lead into half-time.
However, Macleay Valley's lack of discipline and repeated mistakes eventually proved costly as the Tigers fought their way back into the contest.
The Tigers scored consecutive tries to take an 18-16 lead before the Mustangs put their noses back in front through a try to captain Richie Roberts.
The Mustangs weren't able to hold on though, as the Tigers crossed with three minutes remaining to record back-to-back victories.
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