The battle for promotion and the play-off places in the Pitching In Southern League Premier Central is nicely poised with just ten points separating the whole of the top nine clubs.
Tucked within that leading pack is Harborough Town who, it’s fair to say, are enjoying their first taste of life at this level.
Having experienced an Emirates FA Cup adventure earlier in the campaign that took them to the second round proper and a trip to Reading, they now find themselves just one point off the top five ahead of Tuesday’s trip to Bromsgrove Sporting.
A commanding 4-0 victory at Bishop’s Stortford at the weekend means that they have won five of their last six games amidst a seven-match unbeaten run.
“To be in the mix for a play-off place going into the final month of the season is really exciting,” Luis Rose told us. “It wasn’t all that long ago we were looking over our shoulder and worried about being dragged into a relegation battle, so it shows how quickly fortunes can change in this League.
“We’ve done really well to put ourselves into this position and now it’s a case of taking it one game at a time and trying to not get too far ahead of ourselves because there are some big clubs battling it out with us to finish in the top five.
“For us to be in this kind of company and still have everything to play for shows exactly how far we have come. We’re just going to enjoy the run-in and look to extend the great form that we’re on for as long as we possibly can.
“Saturday’s 4-0 away win at Bishop’s Stortford was a great result and performance. It’s a tough place to go and, to be fair, we dominated the game from start to finish. We could have had things wrapped up by half-time but we were guilty of missing some good chances.
“However, we were a lot more clinical after the break and that was reflected in the final scoreline.
“Now our attention turns to the task in hand on Tuesday evening against a Bromsgrove Sporting side who are looking for the points to make them safe from any lingering relegation concerns. Like all of them at this level, it will be a tough test but one that we go into full of confidence and belief given our run of form.
“As I say, we’re taking it one game at a time, nothing is won or lost just yet. There will be twists and turns to come for most teams I think, so it’s a case of accumulating as many points as we can and see where it takes us.”
We ended by asking the 27 year-old, who has been with the club since October 2022, how he has enjoyed his first taste of life at Step 3.
“I didn’t make the best of starts,” he admitted. “It took me a little while to get to grips with the step up, but I feel that over the second half of the season I’m putting in performances that I am happy with.
“The same can be said of the team as a whole; we’ve grown together and got stronger and stronger as the season has progressed. Long may that continue now we’re getting into the ‘business end’!
“Hopefully I can play my part with goals and assists over these remaining games to end what has been a season that I will never forget on a high.”
After tonight’s trip to Bromsgrove Sporting, there’s a mouth-watering home encounter with high-flying Halesowen Town coming up on Saturday.
IMAGE: @R__BMedia
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