Source: FOOTYMAD
York City v Eastbourne Borough
York City manager Martin Foyle has warned against underestimating Blue Square Premier strugglers Eastbourne Borough when the two sides clash at Bootham Crescent this weekend. With almost half of their remaining fifteen fixtures against sides currently in the bottom five of the division, the Minstermen would appear ideally suited to consolidate their position in the play-offs while continuing to challenge for the title outright. But Foyle was refusing to take anything for granted as he warned The Press: “Getting points against these teams might sound easy, but they will all be awkward opponents, starting with Eastbourne. They are a big side who will get behind the ball and frustrate us.“People see our home record now and try to stop us playing. The teams down the bottom are also fighting for their lives.“They are tricky games when you play them and our heavy pitch is certainly a leveller – it’s difficult to play some of the flowing football we were doing on it earlier in the season," he continued.“Ideally, you want to score early against these sides because they have to come out and play then but, if we need to throw everybody forward in search of an 89th-minute goal, we will do. We will need to roll our sleeves up, defend properly and take the chances that come our way.” Leaders Oxford United extended their advantage of third-placed York to nine points during the week after seeing off the challenge of fellow promotion hopefuls AFC Wimbledon. And Foyle was insisting that a top-five place still remains the main priority of his club.“We have got to try and cement our top-five position as quickly as we can while keeping one eye on top spot for as long as it’s still a possibility," he said. "We will probably need another good run if we are to have a chance of catching Oxford but, if we win our next three games, we’ll see where we are then.”Having been without a fixture this week, Foyle instead arranged a behind-closed-doors reserve friendly against Grimsby Town that resulted in a 3-1 defeat for his side.“Adam Smith looked bright," he added. "We know he still has a lot to offer and hopefully he can have a big say during the remaining months of the season. Kevin Gall also did quite well up front getting in behind people.” York will again be without their leading scorer Richard Brodie this weekend as he serves the second of a three-match ban following his recent sending-off at Ebbsfleet United.The visitors are themselves missing suspended former Fleet defender Sacha Opinel. But Neil Jenkins returns from a four-match ban, while striker Andy Atkin and midfielder Matt Crabb are also back in contention. However, Danny Brown remains sidelined with a knee problem.
