Maximum appeals to Steve Watson as York City eye promotion

The Minstermen currently sit two points clear at the top of the table, but have played three games more than second-placed Kings Lynn.

And, with this in mind, City manager Steve Watson is targeting a maximum nine points over the next seven days in a bid to ensure his team head into 2019/20’s home straight in pole position.

“We have to look at them as three must-win games,” said Watson, whose side host Hereford in midweek before travelling to Alfreton next Saturday.

“It might not work out that they need to be must-win games but that’s the way we have to approach them. As we thought, teams are dropping points and results are turning a little bit for different teams but we have got to look at these three games as nine points, not being disrespectful to anyone we’re playing.”

Former Newcastle United defender Watson dropped down a division when he left Gateshead to take over at Bootham Crescent last January, but has finally provided City’s disillusioned fan-base with hope of better things to come following on from the uninspiring reigns of predecessors Martin Gray and Sam Collins. He has led the club to 18 victories in 31 league outings this term, guiding them to the top of the table by focusing his attention almost entirely on his own team and not worrying too much about what the opposition are doing.

That policy will not change this weekend when 19th-placed Curzon visit North Yorkshire, looking to complete a league double over their high-flying hosts.

“I tend to do a minimum amount of work on the opposition. There’s what you have to do, know about their system, their players, their strengths, their weaknesses, but really I just spend a lot of time thinking about ourselves and how we can be at our best.

“We need to defend the way we defended on Saturday [during a 1-0 win at Kiddermnster], be clinical when we get our chances, but we need to create and control the game better.”