Richie McLoughlin believes his Jarrow Roofing side can match any team on their day

Richie McLoughlin believes his Jarrow Roofing side can now be as good as anyone on their day, and he wants the players to do themselves justice when they go to Bishop Auckland tomorrow.
Jarrow Roofing captain Shaun Vipond will miss Bishop Auckland game due to suspension.Jarrow Roofing captain Shaun Vipond will miss Bishop Auckland game due to suspension.
Jarrow Roofing captain Shaun Vipond will miss Bishop Auckland game due to suspension.

The South Tynesiders will make the trip to County Durham with the hope of extending their unbeaten run to eight games, but they will have to do so by getting past sixth-placed Bishop Auckland.

The Two-Blues will be the highest-ranked team the Roofers have faced since their revival began, but McLoughlin says his side are more than capable of getting a positive result.

“Bishops are doing very well,” McLoughlin said.

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“They are in the top six, and they have a very good side. However, I don’t think that there is now much difference between the two sides. We can match them in terms of quality.

“I think it will be a very good and open game, but we just have to go there and carry on playing the same game that we have done over the past couple of months and show the same battling attitude that has worked so well for us.

“We can’t afford to worry about what other teams may or may not do.

“We just have to concentrate on ourselves because I know that we can be as good as anyone in this league on our day.

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“We have a good work ethic and we play good football, so no side will fancy coming up against us.

“There’s no doubt that Bishops will be a test for us, but we will also be a test for them.”

The Roofers’ 7-0 win at Penrith last time out was their largest margin of victory since a 10-0 success over Esh Winning back in September 2013, and they will look to keep that confidence flowing when they go to Heritage Park.

While the South Tynesiders have been unstoppable of late, Bishops have found it hard to string together a consistent run of results in recent times.

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They have only won two of their last six games, and they face the prospect of dropping out of the top six if they fail to beat Roofing and Consett pick up a win in their fixture.

McLoughlin’s men, though, could move up to 13th in the table with a win.

However, their task will be made harder by the fact that captain Shaun Vipond will miss out due to suspension, while full-back Ross Toward is away. Kick-off at Heritage Park is at 3pm.