Town chairman David Sheepshanks says that Saturday's defeat at home to Southampton could act as a "sharpener" for George Burley's squad. The Blues' chairman was also quick to refute newspaper claims that the Cyprus trip was a holiday for the players.
The Town chairman said: "There is no doubt that it was a very disappointing day on Saturday. We were beaten by a Southampton team that showed all the qualities that we like to think are usually associated with us.
"On the face of it, this was a game we should have won. But Southampton are much improved these days. Much as it pains me to say it, they deserved their win.
"As far as we are concerned, while disappointed, it is not a disaster nor can we let it be. It is not as though we can't do it. Our run of seven wins out of eight is living proof that we can.
"I know that some fans will think differently, but I don't subscribe to the suggestion that there is any lack of effort on the part of the players. I went to Cyprus for the last two and a half days of the training trip. I saw for myself how hard the players all worked in both training and in terms of building up the spirit and commitment to the cause of the club.
"I was so impressed by it that I even wrote about it in my programme notes on Saturday. However, I have to say that I was as surprised as anyone by the display against Southampton."
Sheepshanks says he feels that Burley and his squad have the qualities and single-mindedness required to bounce back. He also has sympathy with fans after a number of bad recent home defeats: "I feel sorry for our fans. We lost 4-1 to Manchester City at home in the FA Cup and then had that 6-0 setback at our place to Liverpool. Now comes this latest league defeat. Yet our fans have taken it on the chin and I thank them all for that."