Matlock Town could not have wished for a better three days as six more points were gained on the recovery road which now sees them sit comfortably in the top half of the UniBond League Premier Division table.
Last Saturday they had to come from behind after conceding a 15th minute goal to Whitby's Andrew Campbell before fighting back to send the Seasiders home with another Causeway Lane defeat. Liam King and James Lukic scored to put Matlock 2-1 up at the break before Ross Hannah scored in stoppage time at the end to seal a 3-1 victory. Hannah had earlier incredibly struck the woodwork from the half way line out on the touchline and had it gone in, it would have been a candidate for the best goal ever seen at Causeway Lane. Whitby are yet to win at Matlock in nine attempts.
Then on Monday the Gladiators visited Ashton United's Hurst Cross, a ground where they have won only once in UniBond (Northern Premier) action. A tight game looked to be heading towards a scoreless draw until Hannah struck two late goals to earn his side a great 2-0 victory.
"It's been a great three days and the lads fully deserve those results" said a delighted boss Mark Atkins.
"We were excellent in the first half against Whitby and showed tons of energy and desire. Even when we went a goal down we didn't panic. We showed great character like we'd done in all of the games in this recent good run. We had too much energy for Whitby in the first half and fully deserved our 2-1 lead at half time. Whitby gave us a good test in the second half but Adam Sollitt was hardly troubled and it was good to see Ross Hannah's hard work again rewarded with his goal at the end" he continued.
Atkins admitted that he was not surprised that the Matlock performance on Monday failed to reach the heights of most of their others in their now unbeaten seven match run in league and cup. Six of these games have resulted in victories.
"It was always going to be tough as we're not really used to playing on the Monday after the Saturday game. The pitch was also heavy so I always felt that we might not do as well. To be honest we didn't really get going as I would have liked in the first half, but I said to the players at half time that the game was there for the taking if they wanted it. We were much better in the second half and we knew that Ross would always get a chance with his workrate and he ended up with two well deserved goals."
Hannah has now hit 24 league and cup goals this season, a total that could have been 26 as he scored in both league matches against the now defunct King's Lynn whose record has now been expunged. He leads the UniBond Premier Division scoring charts having scored one more goal than North Ferriby United's Gary Bradshaw.
Their current ninth spot standing, which will more than likely be tenth after Wednesday night's fixture when FC United of Manchester are expected to overvcome second bottom Ossett Town at Gigg Lane, is a far cry from a month ago.
Matlock faced Kendal Town at home on February 7 in third bottom spot prior to kick off. The rest as they say is history.
"We'd lost three league matches on the trot aroumd the turn of the year and gone out of the League Cup, having had a great run from October before that" Atkins explained. "We were down in third bottom spot and in a relegation fight. So it was time for a good chat. I knew the way I wanted us to play and that was to make it hard for teams to play against us. The players have taken all of this on board and worked very hard so this good set of results is a credit to them."
However Atkins issued a cautionary note to optimistic fans with dreams of a play off spot at the end of the season.
"Getting into the play offs is a long shot for we're nine points off them at the moment. But having said that who is to say how far we'll go? My message to the players is that you can go as far as you want to. Nobody frightens us now. We know we can get results against anyone. Like in any sport, we'll need a bit of luck but we've now got a good platform to go for the three points in any game we play."
Matlock head to struggling Frickley Athletic on Saturday, the scene of Atkins' first game in charge of the Gladiators last season when Town were beaten 3-1. Then on Tuesday night it is the first of the A6 derbies with Buxton at Causeway Lane, a contest eagerly anticipated in both camps, which was postponed due to snow and ice on Boxing Day.
"Frickley always give you a tough game, they've played the same way for years and years in that they always give 100%. It'll be one of our hardest games and is likely to be a different test to what we've had recently as we expect Frickley to play a larger percentage of long balls" Atkins said.
Frickley recorded a league double over the Gladiators last season as did Buxton, with John Reed's men also defeating Matlock in the Derbyshire Senior Cup Final.
"Buxton gave us two pastings in the league" Atkins admitted. "They've got largely the same players so it'll be a very tough game between two local teams which we hope will pull in a good crowd and be a good spectacle."
Atkins was quick to discount any thoughts of revenge, even though it will be at the forefront of the Matlock supporters' minds.
"There's no element of revenge" he insisted. "It could be anyone we're playing and we'd still want the three points as much. We leave what happened last season firmly behind us."
Atkins will be forced into at least one change starting at Frickley with full back Lee Featherstone beginning a three match ban following his red card against New Mills in the Derbyshire Senior Cup semi final win. The Gladiators also have one or two other knocks as both Adam Yates (groin strain) and Mark Haran (calf strain) had fitness tests before kick off at Ashton. Jordan Hall also has a calf strain.
"Both Adam and Juggsy (Haran) were determined to play even though they were nowhere near 100% fit because the team are in a good run. People are wanting to play and this shows the spirit and the enthusiasm in the camp at the moment" Atkins explained. "Jordan's come in and done very well. He's had two good games, he's got pace, is direct and has put in some very good crosses, so he offers us another dimension. Losing Lee Featherstone will be a big loss for I think he's been our most consistent player in our recent run. We were disappointed that he got sent off the way he did. He's played his best football for us since I've been here and he's come on leaps and bounds."
Assuming that Yates, Haran and Hall recover in time for the weekend, Scott Brough, who has played further forward in midfield in the last three games, should drop back to full back in Featherstone's place with Danny Wood or Ben Algar possibly being recalled to the starting line up.
Atkins says he might still need to add to his squad ahead of the transfer deadline at the end of March.
"If we get a couple of injuries then we'll be short on numbers again so I'm making a couple of enquiries for players who could join us in the next week or two on a dual registration arrangement."
