Matlock Town boss Mark Atkins has warned fans that the battle to beat relegation won't be pretty.
The Gladiators have just seven games to stay in the UniBond Premier Division, starting with a trip to Merseyside to meet the team one place below them, Cammell Laird.
After their defeat at possible new title favourites Ilkeston Town on Tuesday, ju
st goal difference now separates them and Matlock in the relegation zone.
Should Matlock win, it will be their first league double of the campaign and also their first back to back victories in the league this season, following the 1-0 win over Witton Albion last weekend.
“I was really pleased with the way we dug in and battled on Saturday and there'll need to be more performances like that between now and the end of the season,” said Atkins.
“I said to the players afterwards that no game will be pretty now, we'll have to continue with full-blooded performances like on Saturday and battle hard in every game.
“The points are more vital than the performances.
“Full credit to the players for their reaction to the Buxton defeat.
“They've produced two excellent performances that no-one could argue with.
“If we'd lost the two games they'd have done so knowing that they'd given everything.
“If we can carry on like this in the next seven games then we can get out of this mess.”
The Lairds players are currently playing for free as the credit crunch has hit home, but they have pulled off some major coups in beating table toppers Eastwood at home after earlier winning at Nantwich.
But since that 1-0 home success against the Badgers back on February 7, Cammell have not tasted victory, collecting just two out of the last 21 points on offer, losing their last four games, the latest being this week’s 2-1 defeat at Ilkeston.
Other results have largely gone in Matlock's favour recently but Atkins has stressed that it's what Matlock do that really counts.
And with the transfer deadline now imminent, closing at 5pm today (Thursday), Atkins has sufficient faith in backing his current crop of players to retain the Gladiators' Premier Division status.
“It's up to us to do the business without relying on others. It’s nice if results go our way but we don't want to rely on that.
“I firmly believe that these players can get enough points to get us out of trouble and I have every confidence in them.
“What's more, the players are starting to believe in themselves more.
