Barnes hopes confidence will improve after draw.

Byline: NICK HILTON

MANAGER John Barnes reckons Tranmere can take an injection of confidence from the 1-1 draw with Colchester United that halted a losing run of six League One games.

"This is not the tide turning because we have just taken one draw out of last seven matches," Barnes said.

"But it's a starting point for us. The biggest thing I want the players to take from this is the confidence that they can play and compete and pick up points against good sides.

"I must admit I was a bit worried before the game because I knew Colchester would pose a very physical threat. We stood up to the test. As big and strong as they are, we got the ball down and played.

"We played well in the first half, passed the ball well, got into good positions and got our midfield players forward.

"Colchester made it hard for us in the second half and it really became a battle, which we stood up to."

Barnes added: "That's the best performance I have seen for us - in the first half - in terms of being calm and passing the ball into good areas and giving our strikers opportunities."

The result did little to improve Rovers' position in 23rd place in the table. With four points on the board they are kept off the bottom only by Southampton's 10 point deduction.

Barnes said: "We wanted three points but after the horrendous run we've had, we first of all wanted a clean sheet and if not, a point. We did have some good fortune because there were one or two incidents in our box that fell for us.

"But a lot has been going against us recently, so maybe we deserved that little bit of luck."

Rovers may have reason to take a renewed sense of optimism into tomorrow's encounter with fellow strugglers Wycombe Wanderers at Adams Park.

"The way we played in the first half should give us hope for when we play against less physical teams," Barnes said.

"We were able to play under physical pressure and that's really what has let us down in recent games. We have not had that belief in ourselves on the ball. I've said to the players that if they put in performances like that, they will be okay in terms of results."

Even so, the former England midfielder admits he is still in a "crisis" situation.

Barnes and assistant Jason McAteer are yet to win over the majority of fans. An on-line petition, calling on chairman Peter Johnson to make a change in management, and signed by more than 1000 fans, is to be delivered to the club this week.

Barnes said: "We are in the pressure zone, me more than any other manager down here, because of the results. Even when managers are winning they say they are a few games from a crisis. We are still in a crisis. We've taken a point at home and you want to win your matches at home.

"But the interesting thing about this division is we are not adrift. A couple of wins puts us into the pack. That's the only positive you can take from our position, because we need to be picking up points regularly and playing well."