Double Easter success is the target to seal deal for Brehaut
THE prospect of a league title rather than chocolate eggs is what excites Leek Town ahead of the Easter weekend, even though Josh Brehaut remains cautious.
Having led the Blues to the Staffordshire Senior Cup final, the club’s manager has been preparing for Northern
Premier League West Division clashes against Stalybridge Celtic on Friday and Newcastle Town on Monday.
Following their 1-1 draw at Hednesford Town last weekend, two wins would guarantee the title regardless of other results.
“We know winning two games is what we’ve got to do,” said Brehaut.
“The fact that it remains evidently in our own hands is obviously very positive.”
That’s an understatement given Leek are 15 points clear with six games to play having gone 21 games unbeaten, winning 18 of them.
Many neutrals would have expected
Leek to beat relegation-threatened Hednesford but at this stage of the season, with teams fighting at both ends of the table, and Brehaut explained: “If you look at it on paper people would have thought we’d have got three points on Saturday and but for incredible blocks Hednesford made we would have done. They are fighting and you’d expect nothing less but once again the point was proved, this league is a really tough league.
“They got 1,500 through the gate and they did a great job of getting the punters in and while it was a game we could have won, it wasn’t an easy game.
“It was windy on a difficult pitch. You take the point and get out of there.”
On Stalybridge he explained: “They are an interesting team. Their record of scoring goals in the first half is incredible. They have scored 65 per cent of their goals in the first half. Which is absolutely insane. Most teams score more goals in the second half when teams are tired.
“It tells you they generally start games well.
“But they’ve also got the best record in the league with points gained from losing positions. Those two stats don’t really add up. What that does mean is that clearly we’ve got to be ready for them from the start. They are a big club and have a big budget and have a strong team when you look at their personnel.”
Stalybridge managed a last-minute winner on Saturday in a 4-3 success against Widnes having trailed 2-0, which bears out their stats.
“They are a funny team it’s hard to know how they are going to be,” added Brehaut. “They are probably disappointed they are not higher up the table than they are but they are still in the play-off picture.”
On Monday Leek face Newcastle Town and former manager Neil Baker.
“We’ll get through Stalybridge first before we think about Newcastle but that game will be an occasion in itself coming up against Neil for the first time since he left and Newcastle being a local rival.
“It could be an interesting day but first and foremost we know we’ve got to win the game on Friday to set ourselves up for that.
“That is the focus, to maintain the run we’ve been on and think about Monday after that.”
Whether or not Leek pick up the title this weekend or whether they have to wait another game, it has been a superb season for Brehaut and the team as they look for a league and cup double and promotion to the Northern Premier League top flight.