Buoyant Guiseley eyeing up fourth win in a row

The play-off-chasing Lions may face their fifth game in a fortnight when they welcome third-placed Chester in their first home match of 2020 at Nethermoor tomorrow, but fatigue will certainly not be an issue.

Not when you are chasing your fourth win on the spin and head into the appointment on the back of a derby double over Farsley Celtic and an outstanding victory at high-flying York City.

Joint-boss Marcus Bignot, whose side claimed the bragging rights on New Year’s Day with a 1-0 win at Farsley, thanks to a goal from Chris Sang, said: “They are all tests in different ways.

“York was a different test to Farsley. Farsley at home is a different test to playing Farsley away. At this moment in time, the boys are coming up trumps and we will look forward to it (Chester).

“There is a lot of optimism and potential in terms of where this group can go. Not only individually, but as a group collectively as well.

“We are looking to evolve and develop this young group. We are now two points off it (the play-offs), with a game in hand on a couple above us and we want to be in and around it and have an exciting second half of the season for supporters.”

As a former defender, Bignot admits that the sight of his side keeping three clean sheets in their past four outings is something that has given him particular satisfaction.

He continued: “One of the things that we wanted to really look at was the goals against and put that right.

“That has been a statistic we have not been happy with and it needed addressing and it certainly looks like it has been addressed. It was an excellent performance at Farsley and defending starts from the front and you could see the effort that Chris Sang, Kaine Felix and Lee Shaw put in.

“Then, it filters down to the midfield line and the back line and then when Marcus (Dewhirst) was called upon, he came up with the goods.”

The win moved Guiseley up to eighth spot and they are just two places and two points behind Farsley, with a game in hand.

Meanwhile, Farsley will be attempting to get back on track after their New Year’s Day disappointment when they make the trip to lowly Kettering Town, managed by former Guiseley chief Paul Cox, tomorrow.

Celts boss Adam Lakeland said: “We cannot be too despondent. It shows how far we have come that with the two victories they (Guiseley) have had against us, they have come off celebrating how we did when we won the league. I think that shows how far we have come as a club that it shows how much it means for Guiseley to beat us.

“We have got to look to bounce back at Kettering. Every game is difficult in this division. You cannot predict any result, but we have got to get ourselves ready.”

Bottom club Bradford Park Avenue host Boston United.

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Harrogate TOwn could end the weekend level on points with league leaders Barrow should they pick up all three points against Maidenhead in the National League tomorrow.

Simon Weaver’s side are currently on a run of three straight victories and are fourth in the league table. Their latest win came against Hartlepool United which was sealed thanks to a second-half goal from Jon Stead.

The veteran forward bagged the winner in the 57th minute as Town made it four wins from five league games.

With third-placed Bromley facing a tough away trip to Notts County and second-placed Yeovil Town taking on a strong Solihull Moors side, Harrogate could potentially jump into second place should all results go their way.

What’s more, if league leaders Barrow slip up against Ebbsfleet United, there is a chance Harrogate could end the weekend level on points with the table toppers.

Despite this, Weaver’s men will need to focus on their own task at hand which is the visit of Maidenhead. Harrogate have a good record against the Magpies, winning two of their last three encounters, however the last time the two teams met the points were shared after a 1-1 draw at York Road.

Away from their league successes, Harrogate will also have one eye on the FA Trophy. A win over Maidenhead would no doubt stand Weaver’s men in good stead for their fast-approaching second round tie against either Solihull or Darlington.

Town have also been recently linked with former Inter Milan prospect Davide Rodari however, Weaver was quick to play down the rumour.

He said: “I’ve seen a four-minute video clip of the player, we’ve made no move or contact and the likelihood at this stage is that we won’t be doing.”

Elsewhere, Halifax Town face a trip down south to face Barnet.

Pete Wild’s team recently ended a seven-match winless run in the National League with a win over Chesterfield. However, that victory was followed up by a goalless draw at home to Stockport County on New Year’s Day.

Should Halifax take all three points, they could lift themselves back into the play-off spots.