I have spoken to a few of the supporters who went to Northampton at the weekend and they have quite rightly said the performance was embarrassing.

That is not me criticising those who played, because the 66-3 scoreline speaks for itself. And although I wasn't involved in the game, I still felt embarrassed as a Bristol Rugby player.

The quote I basically got back from those supporters who went to Franklin's Gardens was that they had "paid their hard-earned cash to watch a load of drivel". So now it is up to the players to put it right.

Richard Hill is putting a stronger side out when Northampton come to the Memorial Stadium on Sunday and this is a big opportunity for a lot of people.

This is a match where we can go out and try to boost the morale of the whole club.

I won't be playing on Sunday, because David Blaney is getting an opportunity. But I love Bristol so much that I will be cheering every single player on. I am so desperate for us to win. We owe it to our supporters and to ourselves to put in a winning performance.

As players we obviously hear the rumours and speculation and it is not too great when you hear that no backers have been coming forward and all the rest of it.

But this is Bristol and we will keep fighting. Of course the speculation is going to have a detrimental effect on some of the players, but it is up to us – and no one else – to perform on the field.

The spirit is still strong and that is what we are about – we are fighters and Bristol is renowned for that. We get in people's faces and we never give up – and that is not about to change.

If we perform on the pitch then there is every chance that someone is going to come in and back us. No one wants to back a loser, so we have to start winning games. The onus is on us and that starts this weekend. We are in a hole and we have to dig ourselves out of it. We know people's livelihoods are at stake – from the cleaner up to the CEO – but it all comes back to what we, as players, do on the pitch.

The club have been up front with us, they have told us they are looking for new backers and the players deserved to know that. But now we need to be equally up front in terms of our on-field performance.

The club is not in a bad financial state, we just need backers to help us go and sign better players. Everyone's wages are going in every month – and they will continue to go in every month. It's just about finding someone with a bit of money to come in and help.