Lincolnshire side Grantham Town are doing all they can to remain in the 7th tier of English football.
The Gingerbreads are currently sat 22nd in the BetVictor Northern Premier League, three points behind 2nd bottom Nantwich Town, and seven points from safety.
However, the November appointment of Dennis Greene has seen a steady improvement in results.
Manager Greene is optimistic. He said: “the boys are sensing that we can do it, and to survive will feel like winning the league.”
Greene arrived from AFC Telford picking up one win and two draws in his six games so far as manager.
An ever present in the side has been 23-year-old goalkeeper Jim Pollard who when asked about his aspirations for the second half of the season said, “As a team the main aim is to stay up and for myself, I want to keep as many clean sheets as possible to help the team”.
The much-needed New Year’s Day win away at mid table Basford United was the clubs first win under Greene. However, the games since his arrival have been tight bar the 3-0 loss to Whitby Town, and it’s now all about turning draws into wins and one goal losses into draws.
Speaking about the 1-0 win against Basford, Pollard said “All the teams around us won so if we had lost that game, they would break way, so the win has kept us in touching distance”.
Despite the win, Grantham couldn’t make it two on the bounce. Gregg Smith’s cheeky lob saw his side equalise, but it wasn’t enough as Radcliffe left the South Kesteven Sports Stadium with a 2-1 win.
The ex Barrow AFC and Maltby Main keeper knows what the side need to do to survive. “We need to stop conceding silly goals because clean sheets are the setting stone to get a win and be a bit more creative going forward”.
With 17 games left, the great escape is not off the cards, and Grantham host 18th placed Ashton United on Saturday in a real six pointer.