'He wants to play' - boss pays tribute to Matlock Town striker Liam Hardy

Liam Hardy hit a brace after fighting through the pain barrier. Pic: Nick Oates

Hardy bagged a vital brace as Town edged past Guiseley 2-1 after battling through injury to play.

“It is massive for him to hit form,” said Atkins. “His work-rate is brilliant, he puts himself out there.

“He is playing with a bad angle and a broken finger, but he wants to play and that shows you his desire for this football club.

“Two goals is fantastic for him. We know what he is like, we have seen he scores goals at this level and that's what we needed.”

It was a first win for the new management duo of Atkins and Adam Yates, with Atkins feeling it was a win that had been on the way.

“It has been coming,” he said. “Today was the day we managed to get the three points on the board.

"Their penalty was a dubious decision.

“When they scored we had five to ten minutes where we couldn’t get to grips with the game and I thought about changing things, but we came back into it very well.

“We got on the ball a bit more and created the chance right at the end.

“It is a relief to have our status secure. We have had very difficult games, games against teams who are all up there and Ilkeston, which is a derby. There are difficult games coming up.

“We wanted to get as many points as we could as soon as possible. We wanted to do it ourselves and not rely on other people to do it for us.

“We now have a little mini-season, can we go four games unbeaten or win all four?

“It is up to us and the players now to show what we can do.”

One player who will be key to any such run will be Yates himself, with Atkins quick to acknowledge the influence of his management partner.

“Adam has been outstanding, and that is with everything else that is going on around him.

“He has been great and listens to the ideas I have. We have listened to each other to come up with solutions, you have to take your hat off to him.

“While he is out there he has to leave everything to me and do his job as a player, he is too good not to play.”

See our website for reaction to the midweek game against Gainsborough Trinity.