CONSISTENCY is one of the most widely found words in football.

However, it seems to have deserted Weymouth right now.

The Terras are struggling to put any sort of rhythm together on the pitch in successive games and that stop-start momentum has translated into patchy results, too.

Frustration is in danger of boiling over with some fans booing the Terras after their 5-1 thrashing at home to Bath City on Tuesday.

Many spectators are irritated by what they perceive to be a lack of entertaining football and have even criticised manager Bobby Wilkinson’s tactical nous.

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With opinion split on Weymouth’s endeavours, it is important to remember they are much better off than at this time last season.

They are no longer playing catch-up to the pack from the bottom of the table as they were in 2022/23, although they find themselves looking down from 17th rather than up.

Performances have not been fluent in recent times but, in the 3-1 wins against Eastbourne and Dover plus the second half of the 2-0 loss to rivals Yeovil, Weymouth have given glimpses of their ability.

Whether they can tune in more frequently to the positive football sprinkled in those games is the key question – and it comes down to consistency.

Weymouth may well be on a run of only two defeats in nine matches but many fans feel the time to kick on has come and are no longer satisfied with just bottom-half survival.

So, how irritating has the lack of consistency been for Weymouth’s management?

“We have to remember where we are as a football club,” Wilkinson told Echosport.

“Everyone expects high standards but sometimes you’ve got to reflect. This group are still trying to be better every single week.

“They’re not going to be great every week but what we are trying to do is make sure we pick up points.

“Rome wasn’t built in a day. I have to say that we have been in the bottom three or four (in mid-season) for nearly two and a half years.

“This is the first time that we’re not, it’s just that we’re not at the top end where we want to be.

“We do have to come back to reality.

“If we’d have said 365 days ago that we were 17th in the league and two defeats in nine against two teams that were in the play-offs, I think anyone would’ve chosen that if we’re being real.”

Wilkinson’s situation is made more difficult by the apparent lack of wiggle room in his budget.

The Terras are widely recognised to have one of the smallest purses in the National League South, with Wilkinson believing his wallet to be near the bottom of the scale.

Weymouth have already used 30 players this season and must now rely on loans or jettisoning players to bring others in.

However, more activity in the player market and tinkering with the squad could unsettle performances and results further.

There is no guarantee that chopping and changing his players would work and work quickly, at that.

Asked in the aftermath of the Bath defeat whether he has the option to bring new players in, Wilkinson hinted at the constraints he finds himself under.

Offering a realistic take, he said: “We won’t be dipping into any loan markets because we don’t have any money.

“I’ve heard loads of rumours that we’ve got a good budget. Let’s stop all the guessing.

“My club look after me very well, the best they can. We understand where we are because of where we were the last two and a half years.

“Let’s not forget, we made the FA Cup first round proper to kill the overspend.

“I have to say right now that three forwards in that squad the other day were less than (Ahkeem) Rose’s money last year.

“If you add that up, you can see what we’re playing with. That’s not a problem, we will do what we’ve got to do.

“We had more money last year and the year before and we were in the bottom three.

“We’re now on a very tight budget and we’re not in the bottom three. Does that not show improvement?

“We came to keep the club up and we’ve done it.

“We came to clear the finances and we’ve done it.

“Now, I’m trying to build for the future and I’m doing it.

“We are in a transition period right now. The club have been since the very first day I came in.”

Equally, changing the manager, a view voiced by a minority share of Weymouth fans on social media, is not an instant guarantee of success.

Yes, Weymouth would have a fresh voice and fresh tactics.

But the ‘new manager bounce’ has not yet happened at Dorchester, for instance, and they have the outstanding boss in recent times across Dorset in Tom Killick.

And Weymouth fans could be pointed in the direction of replacing Brian Stock with David Oldfield back in 2022, a decision that ultimately ended in relegation and a troubled start to the next season.

Whether the board can afford to pay Wilkinson off, should they want a new manager, also remains in question – as does the installation of any get-out clause in a contract that runs to the end of 2025/26.

Weymouth have profited in recent times from stability and, both on and off the pitch, it appears the board believe that is the best way to go – for now.

That should breed some sort of consistency off the pitch. The challenge now is to build it on the pitch.

Achieve that and Weymouth should be looking further up the table rather than down it.