MANAGER Kevin Blackwell is beginning to suspect there is a hoodoo hanging over Gigg Lane after Bury stretched the winless start to their League One campaign to 13 matches.

But the Shakers’ bad luck at Yeovil on Saturday was largely of their own making.

Zac Thompson can have few complaints over his straight red card for a two-footed lunge in the 27th minute, while Bury were at fault for both of Yeovil’s goals.

A combination of errors from goalkeeper Trevor Carson and right-back Matt Doherty handed Gary Johnson’s side their opener 10 minutes before the break.

And while 10-man Bury battled their way back into the match to earn a deserved equaliser through Dominic Poleon on 74 minutes, the Shakers’ defence went missing at a corner two minutes later to give Sam Foley a free header for Yeovil’s winner.

After conceding two stoppage-time goals in the last two matches to drop a possible four points, Blackwell believes his side once again did not come away with the points they deserved.

“I’m beginning to fear that someone must have done something wrong here because I’ve not been at any other club where I’ve seen such outrageous fortune like we’ve seen here in the last few weeks,” he said.

“If it’s been like that before I’ve come then it’s no wonder that they are where they are.”

Bury’s eighth defeat of the season left them rooted to the foot of League One, eight points from safety.

It’s fair to say, though, that Blackwell’s side always faced an uphill task at Huish Park after 19-year-old Thompson – who scored on his debut on Tuesday after signing on a month’s loan from Leeds – dived into a challenge with winger Keanu Marsh-Brown with both sets of studs showing.

Blackwell refused to comment on the tackle, but was unhappy with a challenge on his goalkeeper that led to Byron Webster’s opener.

Carson dropped the ball at the big centre-back’s feet after coming out to claim an Ed Upson corner and the Bury manager believes he was impeded as he scrambled to clear it.

There was nothing he could do, however, about Doherty’s attempted clearance, which rebounded off the back of Webster and into the net.

Bury refused to give in, however, and it was no surprise when Poleon – another 19-year-old loan signing from Leeds – fired substitute Peter Sweeney’s corner into the roof of the Yeovil net midway through the second half.

Yet their concentration escaped them immediately after scoring and Foley took advantage to head home Upson’s corner.

Despite Bury slumping to the third defeat of Blackwell’s short reign, the 53-year-old manager had nothing but praise for his players.

“No way can they get their heads down because this was as good as an away performance as I’ve seen, with 10 men, for a long time,” he said.

“We need to guard against a situation now where the players start to believe that if it can go wrong it will go wrong.

“Once again they sank to the grass at the end because they’ve not got what they’ve deserved.”

Bury will host Exeter City in the FA Cup first round the weekend after next, following yesterday’s draw.