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Andy Hessenthaler isn't ruling out freshening up his squad after seeing Dover's 100% away record end in limp fashion at Boreham Wood on Saturday.
Dover had won all four of their previous away matches, but were well beaten by a Wood team that had been without a victory in 14 home league games.
Hessenthaler admitted the paucity of the performance took him by surprise, describing it as probably the worst since his return to the club as boss last October.
He explained: "Apologies to the fans but I won't stand for it because we're not not here for that, we're here to do well this season and I didn't see that sort of performance coming.
"It just lacked everything really. As a manager, and a coaching team, it's hard sometimes to see that coming, we've just won four games away from home on the bounce.
"We haven't turned up but we're not going to stand here and make excuses.
"They were the better team by a country mile. For some reason we just didn't do the things my team should be doing. It was embarrassing."
Whites are seventh and still in the play-off zone, but Hessenthaler knows they won't stay there if they produce many more displays like Saturday's.
They host struggling Chorley at Crabble on Saturday and Hessenthaler suggested that it might be time to introduce some members of the squad whose game time until now has been limited.
Scott Doe and Paul Rooney both came on as substitutes at Boreham Wood and could be in the manager's thinking.
He said: "Maybe I keep telling them (the players) they're good. I used the word fantastic over the last couple of weeks.Maybe they're thinking they are better than what they are.
"I've got to look at that, and I've told them that in the dressing room.
"We're not here to mess around, we're not in the Isthmian League we're in the National League, it's a professional league, we can't put performances on like that.
"I didn't need to shout after the game I just said 'Look we're not here for that, it's not right'.
"I've got to consider those boys (the non-starters) now because if I don't they'll be knocking on my door and rightly so after that performance.
"The ones that weren't involved will have every right to do that. I may even try and look at bringing a couple in if I can, and change it up.
"We're not sitting on this good start that we've had, we need to continue.
"We know how tough this league is. I came last year when the team was struggling with seven points, after a poor start.
"We've had a decent start until today, we know how things can change very quickly and we can't sit on things because we've done well away from home.
"Today was not us at all and we've got to nip it in the bud very quickly."
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