Boss Danny Searle expects Ebbsfleet to start picking up points soon - if they keep showing the same levels of improvement as they have done in the past week.

The Fleet are yet to get off the mark this season in the National League as they lost 2-1 at home to Barnet on Saturday, having suffered a 5-1 opening-day thumping at Gateshead last weekend.

It has been a tough start for Ebbsfleet, who are at Yeovil on Tuesday night, but there were some green shoots for Searle to draw comfort from against the Bees despite substitute striker Dominic Poleon’s stoppage-time penalty proving in vain.

On the Fleet’s performance against Barnet, Searle admitted: “It was certainly better than it was last Saturday!

“We have just had that exact same conversation in the dressing room ‘Was it good enough?’. In spells, no.

“There were two very cheap goals. We talked about (tracking their) runners and, up until the 43rd minute, we looked quite comfortable, although they had a lot of possession.

“At the end of the day, was it better than last week? Yes. Was it good enough? No.

Report: Ebbsfleet 1-2 Barnet

“The message was quite simple, if we can improve the same amount as we did from last weekend to today, we know the results will start coming.”

Ebbsfleet only secured National League survival on the final day last term and there are already fears they will be in another relegation dogfight.

But Searle said: “We have had a tough start.

“Gateshead, they were, arguably, the best footballing side in the league last year and will have been disappointed not to have gone up. But they did win the FA Trophy.

“Then, you’re playing the team that came second and they’re the bookies’ favourite to win the league, so it has been hard.

“Last week was absolutely unrecognisable of any team that I want to put out whereas, this week, there were spells in the game where we were causing them some problems - but they’re a very good side.

“We have only played two games. As the message is in the dressing room, everyone just needs to calm down.

“Let’s get ourselves back on the training pitch, let’s go to Yeovil and take the positives from today, and we’ll look at the negatives and address them.”

Ebbsfleet made three changes against Barnet from the side which were hammered at Gateshead.

Franklin Domi, Giles Phillips and Kwame Thomas replaced Poleon, Louis John and Toby Edser - albeit Thomas came off at half-time for Poleon with both of the Fleet’s starting frontmen on bookings.

Searle said: “We have always been big on training effort, and levels and standards in training. That’s why Franklin came in.

“His reaction to being left out of the squad at Gateshead was phenomenal. He deserved his start and I felt he did well, considering he came straight into the team, having not been in it.

“We had a couple of injuries last week in training, which probably changed our starting XI but that’s why you have a squad of players - to deal with it. We tried to make some changes and change things around a little bit.

“We wanted a reaction - and we got one. It was the same with the players that came onto the pitch to finish the game, they tried to influence the game and tried to get us going. Full credit to them.

“I think Barnet will understand that they were in a game towards the end, as opposed to playing against a team just going out with a whimper.”

Poleon fired in a late penalty after former Dover defender Danny Collinge was adjudged to have fouled someone following a right-wing cross by Ben Chapman.

Asked if that 95th-minute goal had just come a bit too late, Searle replied: “Yes and no.

“There were still a couple of minutes left. Obviously, we would have wanted it to be earlier.

“But we then gave some stupid free-kicks away which killed the momentum of the game.

“Apparently, there’s a new rule now where you can take as long as you want over a throw-in and that doesn’t count towards any injury time. That’s brand new to me.

“I look forward to reading that in the rulebook because that’s what was explained to me on the side of the pitch.

“But we would do the same if it was the other way around so that’s not a criticism of Barnet.

“That’s probably more something around managing the game from an official’s perspective.”

Searle also commented on first-team coach Grant Basey being handed an 82nd-minute straight red card by referee Steven Copeland.

“He shouldn’t have said what he said,” he admitted.

“Red card? That’s probably a bit harsh, to be honest.

“Should he have been booked? Probably. That’s what I thought he was coming over to do.

“But I’m not going to go into that too much because I’ll probably end up getting myself into trouble.”

Yeovil got off the mark at the second attempt in the league this term as defender Morgan Williams’ second-half strike earned them a 1-0 weekend win at Braintree.