NPL preview | Hebburn eye return to summit while Rylands look to pull away from the chasing pack

FC United’s midweek battle with Stockton Town was postponed once more, meaning that the points gap between the two sides remains at just one.

This means that the Hornets need just a point to move back above Mark Beesley’s side, but they’ll be looking for all three given they’ll have played twice more than the current leaders after this weekend.

Hebburn host Lancaster City, who are still in the play-off hunt. A win for the Dolly Blues could see them move just one point behind the top five.

Additionally, a draw at Hebburn Sports Ground could see Hednesford Town move back to the top, as they, too, are just a point behind the leaders. Nevertheless, the Pitmen have a difficult trip to Workington to contend with.

Only FC United have picked up more points over the last 10 games than the Reds, who have transformed from a side that looked dead and buried at the bottom of the table at the turn of the new year to one who many believe will stay up.

They’re still in the drop zone heading into this weekend, but a third consecutive win, and a fifth straight in front of their home fans, would almost certainly lift them above the parapet.

Elsewhere, Warrington Rylands have a massive opportunity to control their own destiny and have securing a play-off spot in their own hands when they travel to sixth-placed Gainsborough Trinity.

Russ Wilcox’s side were beaten in midweek by Bamber Bridge - a result which kept them outside the top five, and means that they remain two points behind Rylands, still with a game in hand.

A win at the Kal Group Stadium for the Holy Blues would see them leapfrog their visitors, while a return to winning ways for Rylands would extend their lead over Gainsborough to five points, meaning they couldn’t climb above them even with a win in their extra game.

In between those two sit Stockton, who will be looking to take advantage of one or both sides dropping points this weekend when they travel to Hyde United, looking for consecutive win number three.

Hyde have been beaten in four of their last five matches, and have just one league win to their name since the start of November. A rare victory here would be massive in their bid to remain within touching distance of safety, as they start the weekend three points adrift.

Morpeth Town and Prescot Cables, along with Workington, are all tied on 36 points, just above Michael Clegg’s side.

While Workington take on the side currently third, both the Highwaymen and Cables have home games against teams who could use the points to all-but-confirm their own safety.

First, Morpeth are angling for their third win in a row when they welcome Leek Town to Craik Park, who begin the weekend just four points ahead of their hosts.

A win for Leek would see them move seven points clear of the relegation zone, which should be enough heading into the final five games. However, Craig Lynch’s side will be looking to not only pull away from the drop, but drag the Blues closer in by cutting their gap to one point.

And at the Auto Safety Centre Stadium, Prescot host Ilkeston Town, who are just a point ahead of Leek themselves, and five above the drop.

Cables haven’t won in their last nine games, but have picked up draws in each of their last four to help keep themselves afloat. A big three points here would, again, drag Ian Deakin’s side that little bit closer to the drop, while seeing Prescot pull away.

Rushall Olympic come into this one just two points above danger, having drawn five of their last six games.

They host Guiseley, who sit five points ahead of them, but having played a game more, losing on Tuesday against Cleethorpes Town. You feel that Ian Richards’ side need just one more win to secure their place in Step 3 for next year, and they’ll be targeting it here.

Also battling down near the bottom are Whitby Town, who, like Rushall, are two points above the drop, but come into the weekend off the back of three straight defeats.

They’ll be aiming to quell that losing run when they host Warrington Town, whose season is starting to peter out towards a mid-table finish.

And the league’s bottom club, Stocksbridge Park Steels, have an opportunity to perhaps climb off the foot of the table and move as little as one point away from safety, when they take on Ashton United at Bracken Moor.

Like Warrington, Ashton’s chances of finishing in the play-offs or the relegation zone aren’t mathematically impossible, but rather improbable going into the final six games, so Stocksbridge will be hoping to take advantage of that to win their first in six.

And finally, the two sides who were victorious in midweek, Bamber Bridge and Cleethorpes, meet at Irongate.

Those midweek wins have given them a slight glimmer of hope that they could gatecrash the play-off race in the closing stages of this season.

They’d likely need to win all of their final six games to do so, and there’d be no better way to start that than by knocking off the other.

All games will kick off at 3pm, unless stated otherwise.

Fixtures - Saturday 28 March

• Bamber Bridge vs Cleethorpes Town
• Gainsborough Trinity vs Warrington Rylands
• Hebburn Town vs Lancaster City
• Hyde United vs Stockton Town
• Morpeth Town vs Leek Town
• Prescot Cables vs Ilkeston Town
• Rushall Olympic vs Guiseley
• Stocksbridge Park Steels vs Ashton United
• Warrington Town vs Whitby Town
• Workington vs Hednesford Town

Check out the latest fixtures and results from across the NPL East Division, NPL Midlands Division and NPL West Division.

For a closer look at the current state of play across all three Step 4 divisions, click here.