Toolstation NCEL Division One
Mick O’Connell hopes Harrogate Railway have got through their sticky patch and he is urging his men to put their foot down on the accelerator.
Railway are fourth after collecting 20 points from a possible 30 so far but prior to beating Athersley Rec and Wakefield AFC, they had won one in five matches.
“I think we started (the season) well in terms of performances,” O’Connell told Non League Yorkshire.
“In the last few weeks we have taken a massive dip in our form.
“We haven’t been playing well enough and we haven’t been playing to the standards that we demand here.
“Against Wakefield we showed great togetherness.
“We attacked as a team, we defended as a team and we showed glimpses of what we are about.
“I think we’ll get better off the back of it because confidence-wise we’ll grow from it and it gives us a platform to kick on from.
“We have a run of games where if you look at them you’d expect to take maximum points.
“With the group of lads in the changing room we need to take maximum points (at Staveley on Saturday) and go on a run.
“We have to focus on ourselves, not the teams around us and keep winning games.”
O’Connell also feels Railway are in a “stronger position” than this time last year.
“Last year we had a up and down start because we had a lot of injuries and inconsistent performances and results,” he said.
“I would probably say we’re in a stronger position this time around.
“We have a good group and we’re starting to look fitter and sharper so I think we’re in a better position.
“We have to keep concentrating on ourselves.
“We have to worry about our performance levels each week and stay resilience.
“If we do that we’ll be ok.”