Safety comes first for frustrated Wrens boss

Rainworth Miners Welfare manager Scott Rickards is determined to see his side confirm their Evo-Stik Northern Premier League status on Saturday with a victory at Kidsgrove Athletic, writes Gordon Foster.

Mathematically, the Wrens only need a point to ensure the Potteries club, propping up the First Division South table following Eastwood Town’s demise, cannot overtake them.

However, Rickards knows they have work to do after being left frustrated by his side's failure to pass the safety target last weekend when they presented hosts Sheffield with a 3-1 victory, ending the home side's own eight-match winless run.

Despite dominating the first half, the Wrens found themselves a goal behind by the break and were left with a mountain to climb after Damian Magee was dismissed for a rash challenge just before the break.

Rickards, pictured, said: "We wanted to bounce back from our heavy defeat by Leek and I was confident that we would put on a show, but that one incident changed the whole dynamic of the game. And, for all the possession we had and the good football we played, we never really felt comfortable after that.

"Realistically we have belief and we are playing some great football, and I have no doubt that had we kept 11 players on the field we would have won the game. It's not the first time this season that we have ended up conceding a goal from our own corner either, so we should have learned from that and dealt with the situation.

"The fact that we won eleven in the first half shows how much we were on the front foot, but it's results that get you up the league table."

Rickards, though, remains confident about his side's prospects for the rest of the season, starting at Kidsgrove this weekend.

He added: "We will go there with the same mentality, try to keep the ball and play good football. We have six games remaining in the league and I believe we have a really good chance of winning four of those, including this weekend."