Mariners told not to take feet off pedal

SOUTH Shields captain Jon Shaw has warned his side against any complacency ahead of their trip to Stafford Rangers.

The fixture sees the BetVictor NPL Premier Division’s top and bottom clubs face each other, with many expecting the Mariners to further boost their promotion hopes by claiming all three points at Marston Road.

Despite their lowly position in the league, Stafford will present a stern test for Graham Fenton and Lee Picton’s side after losing just one of their five home games this season.

They also boast the second best defensive record in the bottom half of the table – with only Morpeth Town conceding few than their 19 goals so far.

Shaw insisted that his side will travel to the Midlands in confidence – but believes that his team-mates will need to be wary of their opposition.

He said: “You can think we should win it, and you can go down there thinking that we will cause them all of the problems.

“But you have to also go there being completely aware of the problems that they can cause us.

“Out of all of the bottom teams they have conceded the least amount of goals.

“They are going to be big, strong and compact and we have encountered this kind of football ever since I have been at the club.

“We have been sucker-punched a few times, we have won a lot of times – and we are coming off the back of being sucker-punched in the league against Lancaster City.

“The fact that they (Stafford) are bottom of the league may show that they don’t counter-attack as well as the top sides and they don’t get the goals that they need.

“But we have to be very wary and we will have to be patient.”

The Mariners will check on the fitness of Shaw ahead of the trip to the Midlands but winger Luke Daly remains unavailable.

Morpeth Town also face a trip to a club struggling at the wrong end of the Premier Division table as they face Gainsborough Trinity at the Martin & Co Arena.

Nicky Gray’s side will be looking to stretch their unbeaten run to seven league games with a win against the Lincolnshire outfit, who currently sit second from bottom in the table.

Highwaymen midfielder Ben Sayer remains unavailable with a long-term knee injury.