Toolstation NCEL Division One
Craig Denton is an excited man as Hallam prepare to attempt to take a giant leap towards the Division One title in one of the biggest games in their history.
Hallam host second-placed North Ferriby at Sandygate, bidding to go six points clear with six games left.
The place will be backed as over 1000 people are expected to attend and Denton says it will be a great occasion.
“Now we focus on Saturday and it is all there for the taking,” Denton told Non League Yorkshire.
“Ferriby will want to come and take three points but we have to make sure we are bang at it.
“If we’re bang at it like we were at Selby then we’ll hopefully collect three points.
“If we have an iffy performance like we did against Glasshoughton and Ollerton, we’ll make it really difficult for ourselves.
“We need to make sure we take the Selby performance into Saturday.
“It is going to be a cracking game for Hallam and Northern Counties.
“I think we’re expecting a big turnout and I’m hoping 1200.
“If can get anything around that it’ll be absolutely magical and it will be a great advert for Northern Counties football and great for Non League Football.
“I can’t wait for Saturday.”
A Hallam victory would put them in touching distance of returning to the top flight of NCEL football for the first time since 2011.
A Ferriby win would put them level on 81 but Hallam would remain top with a far superior goals difference.
Denton says the pressure is on Chris Bolder’s side.
“I think Ferriby need to come and beat us,” he said.
“That would seriously open it up.
“They are capable of that but we’re capable of collecting three points as well.
“It is going to be a cracking game.
“I see two good teams.
“They have some great attacking players and so have we.
“They have experience and so have we so I think it will be a close game.
“If we win the game it gives us a big boost in terms of the opposition we come up against after Ferriby.
“If we lose the game it opens it up where we can’t slip up.
“It is going to be tough.
“I can play scenarios around my head, draws, wins, losses but we have to make sure we concentrate on ourselves that we give 110%.
“If we do I think we’ll come out on a positive side.”
Ferriby are ironically the only team to stop Hallam, who have found the net 116 times in the league, from scoring this season.
That was in a 1-0 win back in October – a defeat that is still fresh in Denton’s mind.
“We didn’t turn up away at Ferriby and that’s what I was disappointed with,” he said.
“I give credit to teams who beat us and give them a handshake and pat on the back and say ‘well done’.
“But we didn’t take our game to Ferriby so I want to see a proper Hallam performance.
“I want to see what’s seen (at Selby), attacking, front-foot football.
“I want us playing in and around the box getting shots off and I don’t want to see the performance that we saw at Ferriby.”
Hallam won 4-0 at Selby Town in midweek and Denton was thrilled with the display.
“I was a little bit nervous into the game as Selby had only lost 1-0 to Ferriby last week,” he said.
“We knew it would be a really difficult game but I thought we started like a house on fire.
“The wind was going into back four so we had to settle that for five or ten minutes.
“The wind dropped and we were able to get at their full-backs and our front three were fantastic in the final third and caused them all of problems.
“We went 1-0 up and when we quickly went and got that second goal you could see Selby’s heads drop.
“It was then about us being ruthless and trying to get a third which we did.
“We were pleased at half-time and we patted everyone on the back.”
I wish both teams best of luck and hope to make it a good game, come on Hallam.