Bacup Borough remain focused after suffering their third defeat in a row at home to Euxton Villa FC on Saturday.
The past week has been difficult for Borough with several key players missing through injury and others away due to scheduled holidays.
Before the Maghull fixture last weekend Brent Peters team had enjoyed four wins out of four with no goals conceded. An excellent start to the campaign that brought with it a lot of excitement from the supporters.
That excitement soon wavered when Borough suffered defeat against Maghull followed by disappointment against newly promoted Thornton Cleveleys at home on Wednesday evening.
The early performances that saw Peter' side achieve those wins have been down to a collective blend of togetherness, but also great energy through the middle of the park with Michael Gervin and Callum Hewitt playing a pivotal role in orchestrating those victories.
Callum Hewitt in action against Euxton Villa | Photo: @callum_p_photography
As we know the season is long and challenging with games coming thick and fast, especially in the opening few months where weekend and midweek fixtures very quickly can take their toll on players.
In the past few games we've seen that tiredness creeping in to several of Borough's key players. And with the entire team setting extremely high standards it becomes easier to recognise when those players are slightly under their usual seven and eight out of ten ratings.
Saying this. The manager and players are remaining confident and fully focused on what should be a positive season for the Borough. Each one of them understands what is needed in order to compete in such a demanding league. And even though they had the agony of a narrow defeat on Saturday to Euxton Villa the mood in the camp remains bouyant.
Borough dropped to seventh after that defeat but are certainly within touching distance of the top three and sitting on twelve points.
Unfortunately Callum Hewitt limped out of that game with Euxton Villa with an injury and could possibly miss the trip to Steeton AFC on Tuesday night. And right back, Ben Langley has been carrying an injury for several weeks, but has been playing through the pain barrier with a badly bruised heel.
Ben Langley playing through the pain barrier for the cause | Photo: @callum_p_photography
Brent Peters has had the task of placing square pegs in round holes for the past few games and this has created a detrimental impact on the team and the way it usually plays.
Some of the players have been playing in unfamiliar roles which also creates issues when they're not fully au fait with the roles and responsibilities of that position.
Talking to Brent Peters after the Euxton Villa defeat, he said;
"It's been a difficult seven days for the lads. We were never going to keep up that unbeaten run forever. It was always going to happen at some stage, but unfortunately it's continued for three matches.
"I am not overly worried at the moment because we had four good wins, but we now need to get back to winning ways and keep up this positive momentum.
Challenging times for the Bacup Borough management team | Photo: @callum_p_photography
"Steeton on Tuesday night will be a hard game as they always are on that surface at Marley. And with a visit to Nelson coming up we need to get back on the horse quickly."
I asked Brent why he felt that the team was lacking that inital injection that we saw in the early fixtures.
"It can be a number of things, Steve. We've had players missing games. We've had injuries to several of our key players. And it's clear to see that some of our lads are tired. It may be early in the season but these lads are working long hours away from the club. It can, and does take its toll on them physically, but we will work through it together.
He goes on to say; "It happens to every team and we are no different. It's about staying positive and believing in our own ability. There's some excellent footballers at this club and my coaching staff and myself have every confidence in them to come good again."
The game at Steeton AFC | KO: 7.45pm but if you can't make the game then you can listen to it live on the Bacup Borough FC Facebook page from 7.30pm.
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