Gavin Tomlin is determined to prove his critics wrong by helping Crawley avoid relegation.

The striker has been the target of abuse from Reds fans after struggling to make an impact following his summer move from Port Vale.

Tomlin’s late winner against Swindon Town was only his second in 26 games with supporters singling him out as a scapegoat for Crawley’s problems this season.

The 32-year-old admits he has not done enough to win over the fans yet but hopes to change their opinion of him over the remaining 13 games as Reds attempt to stay in League One.

Tomlin said: “It has been really difficult this season. When I came to Crawley I expected to score lots of goals like Izale (McLeod) has but it has not worked out for whatever reason.

“I’ve been aware of what the fans have said about me but I try to use that as motivation to show them they are wrong. I’ve been getting quite a bit of criticism which I can understand and it is up to me to turn that around.

“It is not something new. I have always received criticism throughout my career but I don’t see it as a bad thing. If it is from people who understand the game then you have to accept it and try to work on the areas you need to improve.

“Even as a youngster I had lots of rejections from clubs so it doesn’t bother me. I had trials at loads of clubs and got knocked back but the important thing is to maintain confidence in your own ability even if others doubt you.

“Sometimes I didn’t even receive a letter back after a trial when I thought I’d done okay but there is no point getting down about it. All you can do is roll your sleeves up and work harder to try to put things right.”

And working harder is exactly what Tomlin has been doing in a bid to put a positive spin on a frustrating season and contribute to Crawley’s battle to escape the drop.

The former Yeovil frontman was rewarded for the extra hours he has been putting in on the training ground fine tuning his finishing when he lashed home a shot into the roof of the Swindon net to seal a 2-1 win at the County Ground seven days ago.

He said: “Because I haven’t been playing regularly I realise I have to do extra after training every day to stay sharp. When the others go in I stay out doing extra running or finishing so I am ready for my chance when it comes.

“The very best players do extra training every day so what right have I got to not practise a bit more. That has been my motto throughout my career.”

Tomlin believes his ability to play in a number of positions has been partly to blame for his lack of goals this season and he is likely to start in a wide role again against Sheffield United today with McLeod playing as the lone striker.

Tomlin added: “I have played on the wing more than I have up front so I’m not going to get as many chances. I’ve also not had a run of eight or nine games in the team to get any rhythm but I don’t want to make excuses.

“The season has gone the way it has and the only person responsible for that is me and the only person who can put it right is me.”