Aberdeen defender Ashton Taylor has called on the Reds to show their mettle after back-to-back defeats.
The Scottish Premiership leaders lost 2-1 against Caley Thistle on Saturday after tumbling out of the League Cup against Hibs in midweek.
First-half goals from Miles Storey and Ryan Christie left the off-colour Dons trailing at Caledonian Stadium, with Derek McInnes’ side unable to find a way back into the game despite Taylor scoring 10 minutes before half-time.
Aberdeen came into the game on the back of eight straight league victories, but their 100% record came to a halt in the Highlands.
The defeat followed a 2-0 loss against Championship side Hibs in the Cup on Wednesday and Taylor is determined to bounce back when his side hosts St Johnstone on Saturday.
Taylor said: “We are hurting because as players we know it was not good enough and we don’t like to put in that sort of performance.
“Maybe it was a lack of desire to win the first and second ball. It was a very disappointing first half.
“We managed to get ourselves back in it but the damage was done in the first half. Hopefully, that does not happen again.
“It’s a shock for us because we’re used to winning and putting in good performances. That just was not good enough.
“We need to get back to hard work and get back together as a group. It’s a strong enough group and we all demand the best.
“The type of characters we have, if we have something to say we’ll say it.
“We expect the best from every player and demand the best from each one of us. It just goes to show what type of squad we have, with the disappointment we have after losing one game in the league.”
Premiership title rivals Celtic failed to capitalise fully on Aberdeen’s loss, with the Hoops held to a 0-0 draw by Hearts at Parkhead.
Taylor says the Dons must work hard to retain their advantage, adding: “It’s come down by one point but we’ve just got to put things right ourselves. It would have been nice to extend that.
“It’s nice to have the lead but we can’t take it for granted, we have to put in the performances and keep that going.”