Mental Strength Required

We needed mental strength when things looked pointless, but funnily enough, we need it just as much now, when some good performances have given us genuine momentum for the first time this season.

The win against MK Dons felt like a high point we couldn't possibly rival this season, but last Saturday we went and did it. MK Dons were two games into the sort of blip in form that even the best sides suffer when they were beaten by us, but Darlington arrived at The Racecourse on a roll. Having dropped just two points in their last fifteen. And we hammered them!

While commentating on the game I couldn't help drawing attention to the notes I was keeping throughout the game. I split the page in half and write Wrexham's chances on one side and the opposition's on the other. Our side was covered in ink, theirs had just three entries, and one of those was a rather trivial incident when Gavin Ward had to rush out of the box to make a clearance! Ward has now kept clean sheets against the top two sides in the division and only had to make one save in the process, albeit a superb one!

But we need to stay strong now. The Darlington match was the first in what looks like a very nasty stretch of games, and the side mustn't fear them. There's no suggestion that they will; Brian Little has wisely put together a squad packed with character, as the footage inside our changing room on ITV's “Championship Goals” show last Sunday showed.

The brawl in the Bradford game was further evidence of our spirit, and there was a similar reaction when Neil Roberts was being kicked from pillar to post last Saturday.

Furthermore, we're one of the form side of the division, so why should we fear anyone?

The important thing is to not worry if the gap to safety widens. Climbing off the bottom's a patient game. We have to focus on what we're doing; if we can keep grinding out results and accumulating points, even if a lot of them are through draws, we'll catch some of the teams above us eventually. After all, they're down there for a reason; they're not much good!

So no matter how the next few games go, we have to keep focussed on doing our part of the bargain, and not worry about the results of other sides. If we can get through this little run of games in decent shape there's a much more promising look to our end of season run-in. We've only played one of the other sides in the bottom seven at home, so there are plenty of opportunities to claw back any deficits.