Swansea City boss slams 'embarrassing' collapse during Nottingham Forest thrashing

Swansea City manager Russell Martin has branded his team's 5-1 defeat to Nottingham Forest "embarrassing".

The Swans "controlled" the first half, according to Martin, though he heavily criticised his team's second-half performance as they conceded four of the five goals after the interval.

A Sam Surridge hat-trick and a goal from Alex Mighten saw out the win after Cyrus Christie had scored an own goal to give Forest the lead in the first half. Forest's excellent result ended a nine-game unbeaten run for the visitors, which did not sit well with their manager.

"I thought the first half was great, we took the sting out of the atmosphere and controlled it for long parts," he told WalesOnline. "We had some really good moments. Their scary moments came from set-pieces and on the counter attack, which is something they're brilliant at.

"Then we just totally cost ourselves the game after 10 minutes in the second half. Then it's about trying to stay brave, and we didn't do it anywhere near well enough. The willingness to run in the last 20 minutes was nowhere near good enough."

He added: "Today's been embarrassing, the second 45 minutes. The supporters didn't deserve that, and the players and staff didn't deserve that for the way they've worked. It's a real sign of what we are lacking and how to respond when we go behind. Today we learnt a bit about a few guys as well. I'm just really disappointed for everyone that we've finished the season away from home like that.

"The reality check is that if you're not going to really look after the ball and keep it as far away from our goal as possible, then you have to be wiling to fight and defend, and we haven't been able to do that."