YORK City boss Billy McEwan labelled certain players "brain-dead" after declaring himself angry and disappointed with his side's 0-0 draw at Burton Albion on Saturday.

City slipped out of the play-off positions after a third Conference match without a victory at the Pirelli Stadium and McEwan pulled few punches at the final whistle.

The Minstermen manager lectured his players for 30 minutes afterwards and, after emerging from the visitors' changing room, said: "I was very disappointed and angry after the game because of the way we played.

"The pitch and conditions were not conducive to our game but there was stuff going on out there that I was not happy with and I told them that in no uncertain terms.

"We never passed the ball enough and were hoofing it up the pitch. We are better than that and it was not good enough.

"We were careless, sloppy and casual, giving away silly free-kicks and making unnecessary back passes. I think some of us were brain-dead.

"We took a point but I'm not happy with that. The players might have been but I wasn't and I wasn't happy with the performance either."

McEwan was particularly annoyed with a first half display that saw City fail to manage one shot or force one corner.

Top scorer Andy Bishop missed a one-on-one chance early in the second period but Chris Porter also saved a similar chance from home striker Shaun Harrad.

McEwan said: "We started well for the first ten or 15 minutes in the second half and you would have put your house on Andy putting that one-on-one chance away but then we nearly committed hari-kari at the back by being careless and had Chris Porter to thank for a good save.

"He does that for us but he should not have been in that position. We were caught square at the back when one ball beat the lot of us."

City will also be assessing right-back Jamie Price this week after he picked up a knee injury and had to be replaced by Stephen Thomas midway through the second half.

Updated: 10:19 Monday, April 03, 2006