In the clubhouse after Saturday’s game, we will be auctioning off a special captain’s armband in aid of The National League’s partnership with the Poppy Appeal.
After Tuesday’s defeat at Cheltenham, Guiseley will be looking to get back to winning ways this weekend when they host Eastleigh at Nethermoor.
The Lions were on the wrong end of a convincing attacking display from title-chasing Cheltenham Town last time out, following back-to-back home wins over Welling United and Barrow, with injuries to Rob Atkinson and Liam Dickinson as well as Adam Lockwood’s dismissal compounding matters.
While this weekend’s visitors are also flying high in fourth and unbeaten in five Vanarama National League matches, Mark Bower challenged his side to bounce back at Nethermoor.
“I thought everything that could go wrong did go wrong and they taught us a lesson as to why they’re close to top of the league,” Bower said.
“But I can’t fault the players’ effort, I thought they worked their socks off – everyone that pulled on the shirt gave everything they had. This isn’t the kind of fixture that is going to define our season, the games that will make the difference are the ones that we’ve won over the past couple of weeks, the home games.
“On Saturday we’ve got to bounce back, patch the lads up and look to get back to winning ways. We can’t get too down about it; we’re going to lose games at this level the big thing now is can we bounce back. We’ve been on a half decent unbeaten run in the league so we’ve just got to go again.”
With Nicky Boshell, Will Hatfield and Wayne Brooksby having missed recent weeks due to injury, Bower also confirmed it would likely be a patched-up side he has to field again this weekend, especially at the back.
“We’ve got players in the squad that can move around and that we can bring into the side – it gives other players an opportunity an to keep their shirts.
“We’ve obviously got Danny Hall, Jake Lawlor can drop back in to centre-back, Danny Lowe can play there so thankfully it’s not going to be a case of having to sign someone and bring someone in to bridge that gap as such, we’ve got players who are able to come into the team.
“I’ve every confidence that whoever plays at the back on Saturday will be good enough to say ‘I’m going to play and I’m going to play for the rest of the season’.
“It happens over the course of a season, you get injuries, you get suspensions, we’re obviously disappointed to lose Rob for a period of time because I think he’s been absolutely outstanding for us but the lads will come in and give it their best shot.”
By Richard Potter
