Des Macorison remains confident Harrogate Railway will move up the Toolstation NCEL Division One table during the second half of the season.
Despite the early positive signs, Macorison has been unable to halt the slide that Railway have been on since the departure of Billy Miller in 2015 and they lie second bottom, two points behind Ollerton Town and four adrift of Worsbrough Bridge.
Railway have won once in 12 league games, but in recent weeks have faced the Division’s elite sides in Campion, Nostell Miners Welfare, Selby Town and Winterton Rangers.
“We know where we and we know we are in a dogfight and we will get out of this,” Macorison told Non League Yorkshire.
“We’ve had some tough fixtures, but we have a run where we think can pick some points up.
“We have a certain amount of points that we feel we can get and we’re aiming to that. We have some new additions coming in.
“We had three new ones at Selby – Nathan Hunt from Campion, Jack Rushworth from Knaresborough and Matthew Evans. They are good additions and we have three more who will hopefully come in to strengthen us.
“We are tight-knit as a club, from the chairman downwards and we appreciate the patience that the committee are showing. They can see the positives.
“One win will give us the springboard and we know what we need to do.
“We need to strengthen in numbers, but we need a couple of wins, not just for points on the table, but for the mentality of the lads as well.
“It is very hard to motivate the players because it is like deja-vu in every game.
“We were the better team in the first half against Selby, but coming in at half-time losing. We doing this throughout, Campion, Winterton. Campion, four mistakes, we should win that game for me. Winterton, two mistakes, we were the better side.”
Macorison, who has appointed former Railway player Mick O’Connell as his new assistant to replace Danny Scott, has had a lot of bad luck since taking charge in May.
His captain and star player Joe Jagger was prized away by BetVictor side Brighouse Town at the beginning of the slump in October and he has also had to cope with regular unavailability issues as well as injuries.
“Unfortunately throughout the season we have had commitment issues, family trips, university trips,” he said.
“Work is understandable, but unfortunately people veer off and it is killing us.
“I’ve spoken to another club and they have had the same issues and it is difficult. You gear up for one fixture and you end up having to change things.
“We’re lacking in depth in a few positions so when one person is missing, it can screw everything up. Every club is having the same problems, everything is changing in local football.
“Around November we did strengthen when people such as Mike Morris and Aiden Kearsley joined us, but the weather badly hit and it stopped momentum.
“We were also due to play teams around us (Hall Road Rangers and Ollerton Town), but those games got called us.
“When the weather problems died down, we had to play third, fifth and second in a row.”
Railway host Rossington Main on Saturday.