Play-off place in March Town’s own hands despite disappointing home draw with Leicester Nirvana
March Town 1, Leicester Nirvana 1
United Counties League Premier Division South
With just 12 games remaining this season, March Town have a play-off place in their own hands, but their joint manager has warned they must play a lot better than they did on Saturday to achieve it.
A poor second-half performance on Saturday saw the Hares equalise in stoppage time against a side bottom of the table, and Ash Taylor knows that a showing like that against top-of-the-table Wellingborough Town this weekend will be punished.
March were dominant in the first half against their lowly visitors on Saturday, doing everything but score. However, an insipid showing after the break saw Nirvana dreaming of their first away win of the season when they scored through William Clarke after 73 minutes.
But, after Craig Gillies had rattled the crossbar, second-half sub Matt Foy headed home in the third minute of stoppage time to spare the Hares’ blushes. They stay in fourth position.
March’s next two home games are against the two teams fighting for the title in Wellingborough and RC Warwick, with a trip to Bugbrooke St Michaels sandwiched in between.
Taylor said: “The outcome at the end of the season is what it is but the one thing I am asking the players is that we empty the tank. So if we don’t get in the play-off positions but we have given it everything we can, then I accept that.
“That’s the way we need to play now. There is no pressure on the team, we are ambitious and we want to go up but there is no expectancy about pushing this team up to the next level.
“We just have to go out and play now without pressure, give everything we can and then what happens is what happens.”
On the performance against Leicester, he added: “It was hugely frustrating and I struggle to understand at times how the team performs. We were terrific in the first half and played some exceptional football, having lots of attempts at their goal without scoring.
“Another day we would have been two or three up so everything was positive at half-time, but for the second half, we came out so flat. For 20 minutes we did not lay a glove on them and the body language of the players was hard to take.
“I tried to change the system and the personnel and I did get a reaction as Matty Foy came on and did really well, also scoring, but it is two points dropped.
“Credit to Leicester, they got a lot of players behind the ball, battled, defended well and put their bodies on the line, but we should have won that game.
“When you have three, four, five players who are not performing consistently, you get inconsistent results, and that’s where we are at the minute.
“The Jack Withers goal against Daventry (where March came back from 3-1 down to win 5-3) changed the game and we found another 20% but on Saturday we scored and we could have gone on and scored again but it was too late.
“We needed a goal to give us that push and we need players to take the game by the scruff of the neck and try to change the game and we don’t do that.
“Sometimes we have to give the players an absolute rocket to make sure they are on it but today at half-time I was calm but the players went out and just expected to win.”
March: Gill, Bucciero, Saunders (Edwards), Green, Emmington, Withers, Burrows, Smalls, Gillies, Rider (Foy), Seymour-Shove. Subs (not used): Rogers, Whyatt, Carolan.
Star man: Danny Emmington.
Booked: Green, Emmington.
Attendance: 280.
March’s home game against Biggleswade Town on Tuesday night was postponed because of high winds and will now be played on February 27.
