Boss Mark Bower calls on Guiseley players to reward fans' efforts by clinching survival

League officials visited Guiseley recently to inspect a raft of ground improvements, with the club having worked overtime to increase the capacity to 4,000 in line with requirements ahead of a March 31 deadline.

It has been far from straightforward for the Lions, with improvement work put on temporary hold in late winter due to redevelopment issues with Leeds City Council – who posted a ‘stop notice’ at the ground amid concerns about protected trees.

The issues were thankfully resolved with club officials, aided by an army of volunteers, restarting the work and implementing the changes to enable Guiseley to fulfil membership criteria for the division, with £250,000 spent on ground redevelopment by the Lions this season.

Guiseley were handed the green light late last week and are fully focussed on their pitch battle to remain in the division, with Bower’s side perilously placed in 19th, just two points above the bottom four after 12 matches without a win.

Manager Bower, whose side face home double-headers with Cheltenham and Wrexham in the next five days, said: “It is fantastic news about the ground for everyone who has been involved, with Steve (Parkin) in particular putting in money for it.

“But it goes right down to the volunteers who turned up and cleared up and did the smaller tasks; it has all been such a fantastic team effort.

“We now have to make sure that, as a team, that it is not put to waste as the improvements will stand the club in good stead for years to come.

“We want it to be a Conference ground next year, so we have got to make sure that we do our job.”

Another side embroiled in a relegation battle in the Conference and determined to reclaim their divisional status are FC Halifax, aiming to secure a noteworthy double of FA Trophy glory and league safety.

A last-gasp 3-2 win over fellow strugglers Boreham Wood lifted Halifax out of the drop zone on Tuesday, courtesy of a dramatic winner from Connor Hughes.

Manager Jim Harvey said: “We were confident coming home again and knowing that this is the start of the climax to the season.

“We needed a result and we were able to get that.”