Renfrew boss Jimmy Quigley believes hard work is the only way for his players to get out of their current slump.

The New Western Park side lost 3-0 to Division One rivals Kilbirnie Ladeside at Valefield Park on Saturday.

Things started to go wrong in the warm-up as goalkeeper Danny McLeay suffered a hamstring injury, which resulted in Ben Fulton being drafted in from an already depleted bench.

Ryan Connelly and Alex Bell put the hosts 2-0 ahead before Fulton was sent off – and with no substitute goalkeeper left, Renfrew had to use an outfield player between the sticks.

Kilbirnie added to their tally in the final minutes through Jon Scullion to round off a miserable day for the visitors.

Quigley's troops now find themselves in the relegation zone but he insists there is no reason to panic.

He told Gazette Sport: "We really struggled with injuries on Saturday. I’ve had two fit players on the bench and then lost my goalkeeper during the warm-up when he pulled his hamstring.

"We fought hard and battled away but things just didn’t fall for us. They scored a deflection early on and it just sums up our luck at the moment.

"If it wasn’t for bad luck, I wouldn’t have any luck whatsoever but we need to stick together and learn from it.

"We’re not getting played off the park by teams, so there’s not a lack of confidence that we can play. It's just that every week is a different team and a different formation to try and fit the players I’ve got."

Quigley has urged his players to stick together as they try to turn things around.

"I spoke to the boys after the game and there was a wee bit of frustration and anger because they aren’t getting the breaks they think they deserve but we need to work through it," he said.

"The harder you work, the luckier you get, so we’ll be in this week and get everybody focused again."

Quigley admits he is looking to strengthen his forward line, with just 13 goals scored in 13 games this season, ahead of a crucial run of fixtures.

He added: “I’m working to try and get a couple of strikers in because we’re light up there, with only two of six available.

“It’s a tough time for us at the moment and we’re playing teams around about us, so you want to try and pick up points.”

Renfrew host Cambuslang Rangers this Saturday, with kick-off at 2pm.