Toolstation NCEL Division One Play-Offs
Mick O’Connell says his Harrogate Railway players are going to do everything they can to try and rewind the clock and get the fallen great back to the Premier Division.
Railway are two wins away from returning to the Premier Division after a three year absence and victory at Brigg Town tomorrow will put them in a play-off final against either North Ferriby or Rossington Main.
Railway were in the Northern Premier League until 2016 and three relegations (one reprieve) in four seasons have seen them drop to Division One where O’Connell has halted the slide.
“We’re a club with a lot of history but unfortunately we have been in absolute free-fall for the last seven years,” O’Connell told Non League Yorkshire.
“(Getting promoted) would be massive in terms of changing the mindset around the club.
“The club needs to get back in the Premier Division and needs to be challenging in that Division in my opinion.
“We need to get back to somewhere where the club used to be.
“If there was a good time it is now.
“We have a good squad and we’re in a good place.
“We’re going to go there (to Brigg) and leave everything on that pitch on Saturday afternoon and hopefully we come out on the right side of a result
“It is a big occasion for the club but we have to treat it like another game and not look too far ahead.
“We have to turn up on Saturday and do what we have been doing all year and try to perform to the best of our ability.
“if we can do that and we all perform well, I think we can get a result.
“Of course we’re underdogs.
“I would go as far as saying we’re the biggest underdog out of the four sides in the play-offs.
“When you talk about budgets, I make no secret about that we’re in the bottom five in the league for budgets.”
Railway won 2-0 at Brigg on 12th March during a period where their hosts lost four games on the spin.
Brigg have responded with five straight victories and O’Connell is aware of the power Marcus Newell’s side have.
“Every game has a blip and that (2-0 win) was probably the backend of their blip,” he said.
“They have gone unbeaten since.
“They have a quality team with quality players all over the park.
“Historically they score a lot of goals so we’re under no illusions.
“It is going to be a tough game and a tough afternoon but for me there’s no easy way to success.
“If we want to be successful we have to beat teams like this.”
O’Connell also agrees that to an outsider it is the biggest game Railway have been involved in for years.
“From the outside, it probably will the biggest game the club has had for a few years but from my point of view we have to treat it like another game,” he said.
“We have to keep the players’ feet on the ground and keep them focussed on 90 minutes on Saturday.
“That’s the way I’m looking at it.
“Obviously in the cold light of day when we sit back in the middle of the summer when we reflect on it, it probably will have been the biggest game Railway have had for a very long time.
“I can’t remember the last time Harrogate Railway were in a position where they were challenging.”