ARGYLE manager Peter Reid continues to be baffled by the home form that is blighting the early stages of his Home Park career.

After a stunning 3-2 win at Swindon in midweek, the Pilgrims succumbed to a late winner against a Hartlepool side that suffered a 4-0 trouncing to Carlisle on Tuesday.

The visitors came with a defensive game-plan and the Greens simply failed to pass the ball well enough to break down a tangerine wall.

"The better team won," said Reid. "We gave the ball away on numerous occasions and they worked hard and shut us down.

"Considering the form we've been in recently, I thought we played ever so well at Rochdale and Swindon, and then the team were unrecognisable at home, for whatever reason.

"You can't blame the crowd, the crowd get anxious like everybody else but you've got to be professional enough to see it through. They've [Hartlepool] come with a game-plan but you've still got to pass the ball and not give it away too many times, and we didn't do it.

"People didn't take responsibility and I've mentioned this before: good sides are consistent. We're not consistent, so it doesn't make us a good side.

"With Hartlepool's result in midweek and our result - and our performance - I was expecting better. I think they had about a nine-hour journey. It looked like my team had the nine-hour journey. They [Hartlepool] were sharper to the ball.

"We've looked after the players in training this week but for some reason - which we'll have to find out - they just don't perform and we look lacklustre, devoid of confidence after two good performances, and we've got to try and find an answer to it.

"The right-back [Jack Stephens] was our best player. At least he passed it, competed. And he's 16. That was the only one [positive]. I thought they were the better side, I thought they deserved the victory.

"I said to the boys at half time, 'we need to get hold of the ball, pass the ball, they're going to get men behind the ball, they're going to defend deep, so it's important that we keep the football'.

"We looked short of confidence and short of ideas. I put attacking players on, I put wide men on to get the ball and run at them and tried to get pace in the side, but we just didn't pass it, we didn't pass it at all, and we didn't look sharp. Very, very disappointing.

"There was no movement. From the sideline, I was just trying to tell them to calm down and pass the thing, but there were two or three of our players at the back and we were just sending it long every time.

"If they've got men behind the ball, pass it and try and get into areas, try and get it into feet. Too many times passes went astray under no pressure and that's disappointing."

Even the half-time introduction of Yala Bolasie and instructions to get the ball wide failed to lift the lacklustre Pilgrims.

Dean Parrett also came on, which left Reid a man light when Jim Paterson pulled up with a hamstring injury in the last 10 minutes.

"I wanted to get some pace in there and to get Hartlepool wide," said Reid. "They were defending very narrow, so I wanted to stretch them, but it didn't work.

"I was trying to get things changed and I'm sure a [fit] Jim Paterson would have popped out there and shut it down, but the goal actually came from our throw-in, which tells you that we gave the ball away cheaply again. I tried everything but they defended, and we weren't good enough to break them down.

"There is no magic wand. We will be positive in training and there are some talented players out there, as they proved against Swindon. They're showing it away from home but, for some reason, they go in their shells at Home Park, which is a great pitch with a great atmosphere. We have got to have the mental strength to take the football.

"When you get results like Sheffield Wednesday and Swindon, you think that would breed confidence, but we just looked apprehensive, as I've said before. The players are better than they showed there, so we have to keep working."