Izale McLeod has urged Crawley boss John Gregory not to throw in the towel.
Gregory revealed he was considering his position following the disappointing 1-1 draw with Crewe on Saturday.
Reds were outplayed by a Crewe side who were without eight senior players and are now bottom of League One.
McLeod earned Crawley a point with his seventh goal of the season and then admitted the players must take the blame for their inconsistent performances rather than the manager.
MCleod said: “I’ve known John since I was 17. He gave me my debut at Derby so I’ve got a lot of time and respect for him.
“Of course he is going to be down as he is our manager but as players we have to take a portion of the responsibility.
“The gaffer and management team prepare us well for games but when we cross that white line it is up to us to go out and make sure we start well.”
Reds are seven points adrift of the play-offs in 15th place and McLeod admits they have underachieved so far this season.
He added: “We know we have got the potential to push for the top six but we have got to get the results to match it.
“A draw is not end of world but we have realistic plans of pushing towards the play-offs and if that is going to be possible we need to make sure we average two points a game at home. “We felt it was a real opportunity to get the three points on Saturday so we are disappointed.”
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