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Aspin plays down FC Halifax Town’s title hopes INTERVIEW
LEVEL-HEADED: Despite a fine run of seven successive victories, Halifax Town boss Neil Aspin believes his side will finish no higher than the Blue Square North play-offs this season.
FC Halifax Town are in seventh-heaven but boss Neil Aspin insists his side are not title contenders and that even a play-off berth cannot be guaranteed.
Town boss Aspin has guided the Shaymen to an amazing seven wins in succession in Blue Square North with Halifax aiming to make it eight at home to sixth-placed Gainsborough Trinity tonight.
Three more consecutive successes and newly-promoted Town will equal leaders Hyde’s feat of 10 wins in a row in August and September but Aspin does not envisage equalling that feat – or challenging the Tigers at the top of the table.
“I said at the start of the season that nobody would win 10 games in a row but Hyde did and that was an exceptional achievement,” said Aspin. “But you’ve just got to keep chipping away and picking up the points and we know that on our day we can lose to anyone in this league.
Achievement
“We won 10 games in a row last season and that took us from mid-table to top and we had a couple of good runs when I was at Harrogate but to win seven games in a row I feel is a decent achievement for this level of football.
“It’s got us nicely into the play-offs which was the aim at the start of the season but we are one of several teams up there in with a chance of finishing in the play-offs and no more than that.
“We’re not strong enough to win the league.”
Nevertheless, 21 points out of 21 is certainly title-winning form and Halifax would go second with victory tonight and close to within 10 points of Hyde with two games in hand.
Aspin, though, expects a tough night against a Gainsborough side themselves chasing a play-off place and only narrowly beaten by Halifax on Boxing Day.
“Gainsborough are a good side, we played them on Boxing Day and we got a last-minute goal to win the game,” warned Aspin, who will again be without injured captain Tom Baker tonight.
“But our goalkeeper played very well that day and Gainsborough are a very capable side – as they proved when they beat Hyde earlier on in the season.
“We also know that we have to be careful at home as we have had some bad results at home this season and teams come to our place and they raise their game. Gainsborough will come to our place, see the stadium and they’ll fancy it.”
Also right in the play-off mix are fourth-placed Guiseley who travel to Vauxhall Motors tonight buoyed by Saturday’s amazing 4-3 success at home to Droylsden in which they were 3-0 down.
Boss Steve Kittrick, though, merely took the success in his stride and is now calling for another victory at Vauxhall – the manager refusing to panic about the form of Halifax or anyone else.
“It’s in our hands if we want to win this league and now we’ve got to go to Vauxhall and get three points,” said Kittrick, whose side are without the suspended Gavin Rothery tonight. “It will be difficult and they’ve got a kid up front who is in the league’s top 10 goalscorers but we’ve just to keep pecking away, go there and get three points.
“We’ve also not got to worry what Halifax are doing, what Stalybridge are doing or what Hyde and Nuneaton are doing.
“We’ve just got to look after ourselves though I did have a cheeky look at the table on Monday morning.”
Two games also take place in First Division North of the Evo-Stik Northern League tonight with Ossett Town hosting a mid-table clash against Salford City and third-bottom Ossett Albion at 10th-placed Bamber Bridge.
Pickering Town visit Grangetown Boys Club for a North Riding Senior Cup quarter-final while Pontefract Collieries welcome Parkgate for a friendly.
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