Goalkeeper Charlie Crowley says Wingate & Finchley must halt their habit of conceding just before half-time following Saturday’s 3-1 home defeat to title contenders East Thurrock in the Ryman League Premier Division.

The Blues took the lead just after the half-hour mark as Karl Oliyide set up Leon Fisher, but they were pegged back moments before the break as Joe Ellul’s near-post delivery was flicked on by the league’s top scorer Sam Higgins.

The visitors went on to score twice in the space of five minutes, with Higgins netting a 65th-minute penalty before an attempted clearance from Wingate struck Tom Wraight and ricocheted into the net.

There were echoes of the 1-1 draw at home against Leatherhead two weeks previously, when Keith Rowland’s side conceded a 43rd-minute equaliser, and Crowley hopes to buck the trend sooner rather than later.

“It seems to be happening more often than not, which then gets into players’ heads and all of a sudden it becomes a bad habit [that you have] to get out of,” he said.

“It’s something we need to work on in training, especially giving away set pieces right before half-time, because we’ve conceded from them twice in two weeks now.

“The first half was pretty solid. I thought we probably won the first half, apart from the late goal, which was obviously disappointing.”