Soccer:Liverpool forward Dirk Kuyt has apologised to the club's fans after the 2-1 defeat to Blackpool at Anfield. Ian Holloway's Barclays Premier League newcomers dominated the first half and were more than worth their two-goal half-time lead earned by Charlie Adam and Luke Varney.
Sotirios Kyrgiakos's header pulled one back early in the second half and the Greek defender was denied an injury-time equaliser by goalkeeper Matt Gilks but a draw would have merely papered over the cracks of another poor performance.
Liverpool's former championship-winning captain Alan Hansen described the players' display as a "disgrace" and Kuyt admitted it was one of his worst times in a Liverpool shirt.
"It was really, really disappointing," said the Dutchman, who was by no means the worst player on the pitch. "It's probably one of the hardest defeats I've had to take since I've been here and we're sorry for the fans.
"The first thing we have got to do is make sure we start winning games again and then we can begin to take things from there."
Liverpool must now spend the next fortnight rooted in the bottom three because of the international break before they return to action in the Merseyside derby at Goodison Park.
Manager Roy Hodgson admits he and the squad have plenty of work to do to put things right and Kuyt is confident the players will turn things around.
"It is still early days for the manager and we have to keep working but one thing I do know is that we will come back stronger for this experience," he added. "It's frustrating that we have got the international break now because we will have this result hanging over us and everyone in the dressing room wants to put it behind us as quickly as possible.
"We know this result has not helped but we just have to try to focus on the spirit we showed in the second half.
"We have got to make sure we show it in the next game."