South Shields boss Elliott Dickman wary of Needham Market threat

South Shields manager Elliott Dickman has warned his side of the threat posed by relegation threatened Needham Market this weekend.

After suffering away defeats against Chorley and Buxton over the last fortnight, the Mariners return to the 1st Cloud Arena for the first time since an impressive win against Chester when they face a Marketmen side sat one place above the National League North relegation zone. The visitors will arrive on the back of racking up two wins in their last three games and will arrive on South Tyneside looking to complete a league double over the Mariners after claiming a 3-0 win on home soil in October.

For South Shields, the aim now is to instigate an upturn in form after their recent run of five defeats in their last seven games left them 14 points adrift of the play-off places with 14 games remaining in the campaign. Dickman is confident that run can be kickstarted on home soil as he urged his players to rise to the challenge against their struggling visitors.

He told The Gazette: “Any game is a tough game at this level and will be a really competitive game. We just have to make sure we do all of our due diligence and we are fully prepared. We need to make sure the aspects of the game we do well are brought to the table because we know this is going to be another big test for us.

“Our form at home is good, we need to make sure we maintain that and the environment is a really positive one. We need to do that for the push we want to make between now and the end of the season. The record is strong and it needs to continue.”

The Mariners have been dealt two major injury blows in recent weeks after key duo Tom Broadbent and Paul Blackett were substituted during the early stages of the defeats against Chorley and Buxton. However, Dickman is confident both players could be available for Saturday’s game and will be monitored in training on Friday before a final decision is made over their involvement.

“We are training today (Thursday) so we will see how he gets through the session and fingers crossed he will be fine. As I am standing here now, famous last words, he should be fine but we still have a couple of days to make sure he is right. We will see how he copes. Paul is similar. He’s working with Andy today with a view of training tomorrow and speaking to Paul, he’s feeling a lot better so we are hopeful he will be fine.”

Former Newcastle United academy duo Kyle Crossley and Dylan Stephenson will be in contention for the lead role in attack if Blackett is not fit enough to secure a place in the Mariners starting eleven. Dan Ward could be handed another opportunity to continue his battle back towards full fitness after he made substitute appearances in the Mariners last three games.

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