Ashford United assistant boss Tommy Osborne believes hard work will pay off for them as they look to end a run of defeats.

The Nuts & Bolts have lost their last five Isthmian South East games and get the chance to end that run against relegation-threatened Beckenham Town at home on Saturday.

Manager Kevin Watson spoke publicly last week about the personal attacks he’s had to endure on social media but Osborne says the hard work doesn’t stop as they look to turn things around.

Following last weekend’s 2-0 loss to title-chasing Cray Valley, Osborne said: “We still believe that we have a squad of players that are capable of winning games and going on a good run. That is what we will be looking to do.

“We have done it this season already and we are going to keep trying to instil that confidence in those players that it’s doable.

“Actions speak louder than words and we have to put those results together and try and climb the table.

“We are on a bad run at the moment, not so much the Cray game as sometimes you have to hold your hands up and say they were the better side on the day, but the previous games we lost and those games could have gone either way. It can be fine lines sometimes.

“Beckenham will be a hard game, but we are hoping we can get a win and then we can go on a little run ourselves.

“It might just take a victory for us to gain some confidence and put some back-to-back wins together.”

Watson’s recent decision to let 10-goal striker Danny Parish leave was met with some criticism - some of which over-stepped the line on social media. In an interview with the club, the manager admitted he reads it all.

He laughed off one which described him as a “bald fraud” but added: “My parents and wife might read (the comments). Fortunately, my kids are too young, but you just have to be careful about what is acceptable and what is not.

“The disappointing thing for me is how personal people try and go with it as a result of one decision. Maybe it wasn’t working for either party and we parted ways.

“Results haven’t been as we desired, I am aware of that without the need to read social media. Blame can be directed towards me, but just some manners would be appreciated at times.

“There was a comment about me drinking a cup of coffee during a game. If I was drinking Lucozade would it have made a difference?

“It was cold but I will refrain from drinking coffee if it makes people happy. Was me drinking coffee the reason we lost the game? I hope not.

“Little things like that is nitpicky, some people have an agenda which is beyond me to a certain extent, but we keep going and we keep the faith in what we’re doing.

“We still have time left to have relative success this season and while we do that we’ll keep working hard.”

Isthmian South East table

Osborne has worked with Watson for some time. The pair were previously successful together at Cray Valley.

The Ashford assistant said: “Social media is a personal choice, Kev looks at it, he reads comments and bits and pieces, I am the opposite, I am not a big social media person.

“Football is very fickle. When you are winning games and doing well everyone is patting you on the back and giving you lots of confidence, but that can change very quickly.

“I don’t look into it, whether we are doing well or at the moment on a bad run.

“The way I approach things and the way Kevin does, we will continue to be as thorough as we can.

“I have worked with Kevin for a long time now, he’s a very hard-working guy, I am sure that will pay off.”

Watson has said they need to “try and evolve on the pitch” and is looking to strengthen.

Winger Jordan Ababio could feature on Saturday.

He was set to agree a loan deal from Folkestone Invicta, following on from a recent loan agreement by the two clubs that has seen Will Moses move to Homelands.

Osborne added: “Beckenham have some good players and they will want to start putting results on the board. It is a winnable game, but no team will roll over.”

Kymani Thomas has departed, the club announced on Wednesday night, with the player moving on in a bid to “play more regularly for a team closer to his home in east London.” He’s joined Walthamstow.