AFTER being roundly booed from the field following Saturday’s deeply disappointing defeat at home to Burton Albion, Wanderers’ players have been issued with a stark warning – shape up or ship out.

Club chairman Ken Anderson’s latest column, published yesterday on the Whites’ official site, suggests any player who is not wholly committed to the cause should be prepared to be shown the door in January.

The lacklustre defeat at the Macron, to a Burton side who climbed off the foot of the table and above Phil Parkinson’s side into third-bottom, means the Whites slipped back into the relegation zone. And, ahead of reaching the halfway stage of the Championship campaign against Cardiff this weekend, the message to the under-performers was crystal clear.

“My sole aim since l have been involved is to do what is best for the long-term future of the club,” read the chairman’s statement.

“And I won’t hesitate in making difficult decisions if that is what’s required.

“By that I mean backing the manager and bringing players in to strengthen the squad, as well as letting players go. We cannot afford the luxury of carrying anyone who is not giving their all, week in, week out, on the pitch or training ground and knocking on the door to play.

“Going through the motions of just turning up for a pay cheque is not acceptable and won’t be tolerated.

“The players and the management team are all aware of this and it is now up to them to deliver and repay the support and faith you the supporters have shown in them, particularly over the last five months.

“There can be no more excuses – every single one of the squad has to go out there and give everything they have and a bit more.”

Meanwhile, manager Phil Parkinson was keen to put Saturday’s disappointment behind them and focus on the visit of the Bluebirds, insisting: “We had opportunities [against Burton] but we didn’t make the keeper work enough, and when we did the shots were fired straight at him, which is disappointing because our finishing is better than that. We needed someone to be calmer.

“We have to get rid of that result quickly.

“It wasn’t a lack of effort at all, we just lacked a bit of quality to unlock the door.”