South Shields given warning by manager Ian Watson ahead of play-off showdown with Buxton

South Shields manager Ian Watson has warned his players they can not afford to look beyond Saturday’s National League North play-off semi-final clash with Buxton.

The Mariners narrowly missed out on claiming the league title and automatic promotion into the National League as they were pipped to top spot by AFC Fylde on the final day of the regular season. However, the consolation for finishing second in the division was the guarantee of a home tie in the play-off semi-final and Watson’s men discovered their opposition when Buxton claimed a 4-2 home win against Scarborough Athletic on Tuesday night.

Intriguingly, the Mariners also know they will be at home in the final next weekend if they are successful in overcoming Buxton for the first time this season on Saturday - but Watson has stressed their entire focus must be on what lies immediately ahead of them, rather than the potential of a play-off final at the 1st Cloud Arena.

“It’s one massive cup final coming up,” he explained. “We don’t think about the second one, we just think about this Saturday at home. The support that came down (to Kidderminster) was incredible and we thanked them so much for that. They made it feel like a home game at time and obviously Kidderminster have a lot of numbers and they have incredible support.

“But our fans out-sung them in moments and I loved looking over and seeing how much they were supporting the boys. That is why we stayed over in the corner with them a little longer to really thank them for supporting us and we are sorry we didn’t get it over the line but we hope we can still make this season really memorable and give them something to be really proud of.”

‘Moving forward’

Watson praised title rivals Fylde for their efforts during what has been a fascinating battle for the only automatic promotion place in the National League North. Despite completing a memorable league double over the Coasters during two high-class games at Mill Farm and the 1st Cloud Arena, it was the North West outfit that were crowned champions on the final day of the campaign. Watson has been impressed with Craig Mahon’s side - but called on his own players to react to missing out on the title by ‘moving forwards’ in their push for play-off success.

He said: “Fylde brought out the best in us and we brought out the best in them. We had two amazing games with them and the games will stand out as two of my favourite games to be a part of because it was two really good teams going at it. They deserve full credit for what they’ve achieved. They’ve got an amazing squad, they’ve got a really good management and congratulations to them - but it’s about us, it’s about South Shields and how we react. We have to keep moving forward, pushing and growing this football club.”

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