FC Halifax Town just canโt stop winning. Tuesday night saw Grimsby become the latest addition to Townโs win column. A 1-0 win, courtesy of a second half Lois Maynard goal was enough to see the Shaymen leapfrog Grimsby into third place.
The seemingly unstoppable Town train is heading quickly for guaranteed playoffs and its next stop is Macclesfield. Experienced defender Chris Smith knows exactly what the wonderful world of confidence can do for a team: โWe had it when I went up with York, we had a sort of belief that we werenโt going to get beat and it was a bit of an arrogance, not a cocky arrogance, a good arrogance.
โThere is a fine line between a cocky arrogance and a good arrogance and I think weโre in the perfect balance at the moment with the attitude of weโre not going to get beat, if we all do our jobs right.โ
Currently flying high after five impressive away wins on the bounce, it seems a light-year away when Town struggled to even pick up one win on the road. Smith may have found out what the team was missing at the start of the season: โWhen I came here the boys had that arrogance at home. They knew if they did their jobs they werenโt going to get beat and thatโs why theyโve got such a good home record.
โWe have that belief away now and weโre going away to big clubs, ex-league clubs with big support and now it seems like we have a belief. Before the game on Tuesday, we knew if we all did our jobs weโd win the game and we believed it, so maybe itโs just that that bit of belief.โ
Just a few months ago, manager Neil Aspin called for better performances from his defence and boy have they delivered. Now over ten and a half hours (650+ minutes) without conceding a single goal, the Shaymen shield still stands strong.
But Smith knows that the recent success has included every individual at the club, from back-to-front and testament to this is the fact that Town have found the net 13 times since they last conceded: โItโs not just about the form of the defence and the keeper, itโs the whole team and the way that theyโre willing to work for each other.
โIโve never been in a dressing room where itโs full of such good lads. Iโm not saying Iโve been in bad dressing rooms but thereโs no cliques, thereโs no sort of bad eggs, no one thinking that theyโre better than the others and that goes a long way.
โIf youโve got a good dressing room youโre halfway there and I think that shows on the pitch, when the lads are willing to go to that next level for each other. When thereโs cliques or a bit of animosity between a few players in a team it shows but we havenโt got that at all and that shows on the pitch and you only have to look at when we score, every single person comes to celebrate, except Matty Glennon, itโs a long way for him to come!
โThere have been games where Iโve sat on the bench and watched back with admiration, for the way the lads work with and support each other, defensive and attacking.โ
Of course, all this success attracts attention, and Aspin has quietly become one of the hottest properties on the market and Smith thinks it may be the gafferโs down to earth attitude that has guided his team to third in the table: โThere is nothing but positives. He keeps his feet on the ground.
โHeโs not getting carried away with all the hype and obviously heโs had good press because as a manager at this club, when you are doing so well you are always going to attract attention and heโs kept his feet on the ground and it shows that if he does that, the lads do that.โ
FC Halifax Town will go into the game against Macclesfield armed with an unholy amount of confidence achieved from attaining 25 points from a possible 27 from their last nine games. But the experience of Smith tells him that the team cannot get complacent out there come Saturday: โAny team can beat anyone in this league and thatโs been proven throughout so if you go with the attitude that weโve got a good home record, weโre on form at the minute so we just need to turn up, weโll get beat.
โThe lads arenโt like that and Iโm sure they wonโt be like that, the gaffer wouldnโt allow it. Itโs going to be a tough game even though they have nothing to play for. They wonโt just want to lose a game and we know that if results go our way on Friday, then mathematically, we could be in the playoffs.โ
So what do the team have to do to keep this unbelievable form going? Smith thinks that Townโs best bet is to just carry on: โItโs one of them, if you can work it out you bottle it and become a very successful salesman.
โThe gaffer goes on about desire and hard work and I know thatโs an old clichรฉ but it is just that. When itโs happening you just ride with it and hope it continues. The only thing you can do is carry on trying to do what youโre doing and try not to get above yourself, you know, keep your feet on the floor because even if we get to the playoffs thereโs still a long way to go.โ
If all the results go against Halifax, theyโd just need four points from three games to secure themselves that much sought after playoff spot. If you are unable to attend Saturdayโs game then do not panic. The media team, as always, have you covered. Courtesy of live updates via the Shaymen Wall and from our official Twitter account @FCHTOnline. You can also watch extended match highlights and exclusive post-match interviews on Shaymen Player following the game.
Read more posts by Kelly Gilchrist