With four defeats in a row for Macclesfield, Geoff Wappett insists that his machine will crank back into action soon.

The Blues’ defeat to Fylde saw the Priory Park club slide into mid-table in National League One, but their director of rugby is confident of a return to form.

"The knee injury to Charlie Mulchrone is a serious blow for us, as well as for him and the club as a whole" admitted Wappett, who has already had to get by without the services of Matt Simpson and Matt Owens.

"He won’t play on Saturday and the lad who’d cover for him, Matt Simpson, is in Dubai.

"Tom Eaton could have moved to scrum-half with Ross Winney coming in at 10 but Ross is away for a couple of weeks too so Fergus Mulchrone might have to switch to fly-half.

"It’s like a machine, you need to keep it oiled and if you start changing parts around it doesn’t run as smoothly."

The Blues travel to bottom club Birmingham and Solihull on Sunday with Wappett hoping for an improvement in their defensive obligations, adding: "if you go fishing you need a net to catch a lot of fish but if there’s a big hole in it you’re going to lose a lot. We’re going there looking for a win and another bonus point even though we’re trying out a few new combinations."

The Blues boss was happy with the outings of debutant Chris Roddy, who impressed on his step up to the National Leagues, and Chris Jones, who brought cut off a cast on his arm a fortnight early in order to take to the field against Fylde.

"The lads are in good spirits, even though it’s not quite going our way," he added.