Former Hartlepool United man praises South Shields after impressive Macclesfield win
South Shields are hoping to join Hartlepool United in the National League.
Former Hartlepool United defender Dan Dodds has praised National League North title contenders South Shields for their reaction to a recent home defeat against Darlington.
A Bank Holiday Monday home loss against the Quakers threatened to derail the Mariners attempts to join Pools in the National League - but they will head into the final week of the season sitting on top of the table after taking maximum points from a visit to Radcliffe and Tuesday night’s home clash with FA Cup history-makers Macclesfield.
With title rivals AFC Fylde still very much in the battle for top spot ahead of the final two games of the season, Dodds believes the reaction to the defeat against Steve Watson’s side has been well timed. Speaking after the win, he said: “Everyone came in after Darlington and we were gutted with the performance. It’s not like us to underperform and everyone knew we had to be in the right place psychologically for tonight and the last few games of the season. It was a tough one to take but we have shown in the past we can bounce back from disappointment and kick on.”
Respond
Ian Watson’s side are now preparing for their final home game of the season as they host Bedford Town at the 1st Cloud Arena on Saturday afternoon. That comes on the same day title rivals Fylde host Southport before both of the top two face challenging away days on the final day of the season with South Shields heading to Kidderminster Harriers and the Coasters facing a trip to Merthyr Town.
Goal difference looks set to play a key part in the outcome of the title race - but Dodds has warned his team-mates to just focus on the job in hand.
He explained: “We can’t get too carried away by goal difference or anything else going on because we have seen in the last six weeks just how much things can change. We beat Fylde here but then lost two games so it can change either way. We’ve had enough times where we have had to respond so we all need to make sure we are at it for the last two games.”
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