South Shields boss lauds National League North strength ahead of Radcliffe trip

Elliott Dickman believes South Shields are battling for promotion in ‘the most competitive league within the football pyramid’ as they look to boost their play-off bid with a win at Radcliffe on Saturday.

Despite their New Years Day defeat against Darlington, the Mariners currently lie just two points adrift of the National League North play-offs places and will be hoping to move into the top seven with a win at the Neuven Stadium this weekend. The game will also represent an opportunity for Dickman’s side to avenge a a 1-0 home defeat they suffered against Radcliffe earlier in the season as the nine-man Mariners were condemned to a loss by a Josh Hancock penalty.

With the hectic festive fixture list now behind them, South Shields are one of as many as 17 clubs that will head into the second half of the season with a realistic chance of securing a play-off spot at least - and Dickman believes that shows how difficult the second tier of the non-league game can be.

He told The Gazette: “I’ve said it before but this is the most competitive league within the football pyramid. Don’t get me wrong, we are talking very different levels of football between the Premier League and where we are but the fact from the top team to a few teams below us thinking they can get promoted shows just how tough the league is. Any team can beat another on their day, there is nobody running away with it and it’s full of fantastic teams with fantastic players. We enjoy being part of that and we are just focused on what we can do and improving where we can to be on the right side of results.”

Radcliffe head into Saturday’s game sat fourth from bottom in the National League North but can move level on points with a Farsley Celtic side sat just outside of the relegation zone with a win over the Mariners. Dickman’s side will be looking to bounce back from their home defeat against Darlington - but the former Newcastle United and Sunderland coach has warned his players over the multiple threats they will be posted by Saturday’s hosts.

“They can battle, they are competitive, they just keep going and maybe their position in the league is a little bit false. When they played us at the 1st Cloud Arena they played some good football and it was a tough game for us. This is an opportunity for us to put right what we got wrong against Darlington and we are looking forward to looking to do exactly that in a tough game on Saturday.”

Mackenzie Heaney is likely to be the only absentee from the Mariners squad as he nears an approach to fitness.

Radcliffe have confirmed there will be a pitch inspection at the Neuven Stadium on Friday lunchtime and supporters are advised to check the club’s social media and website for further details over the fixture.