There are two games remaining in the League 2 season, giving Harrogate Town two more opportunities to battle its way off the foot of the table and out of the relegation zone.
The fight for survival is now in its most crucial stage, but with just three points separating the bottom sides, it’s still very much alive.
Next up is Walsall and, fresh off the back of a last-gasp win against Colchester United, there’s every reason why momentum can stay with the Sulphurites.
Harrogate riding high on Colchester Heroics
No Harrogate fan at the Exercise Stadium, nor anyone following from home, will ever forget Jacob Slater’s 99th minute winner against Colchester. The prospect of relegation had never loomed larger as the minutes ticked away, and yet as soon as Slater pounced, it suddenly seemed that safety was in the Sulphurites’ grasp.
Harrogate Town may still be at the bottom of League 2, but now it’s just by a single point.
This stage of the season is packed with huge games at every level. Across the country fans will be glued to the action, and Goal.com has a list of free bets offers for UK punters looking to back any of the crucial matches. Heading into its crunch game against Walsall, Harrogate have something that doesn’t show up on stat sheets: momentum.
Wins like the one over Colchester give new life to a team, and can inspire something in the dressing room that helps the players find an extra edge.
There are other reasons to have faith that the team can return home with points. For instance, Harrogate typically enjoy 47% possession to Walsall’s 41%.
Harrogate have also become efficient at absorbing pressure, leading the league in clearances, tackles and saves per match. This is a big reason why the side has a competitive goal difference, and has conceded the second-least amount of goals among the sides fighting off relegation.
Still, at this stage of the season, momentum can be the deciding factor. Right now Harrogate have it. More importantly, despite a win last time out, it seems that Walsall don’t.
Walsall adrift under Byfield
Another major factor that’ll help Harrogate on Saturday is that Walsall currently have nothing to play for.
The Saddlers were top of League 2 on Boxing Day, and looking to put last season’s collapse behind them. Fortunes swung again, however, and this time it was enough for Walsall to replace Mat Sadler as manager. He was replaced by former player Darren Byfield, whose early form earned him the interim role through the end of the season.
Walsall’s form has dipped again, though, with Byfield admitting he dropped his early tactics to chase a playoff spot with a more attacking approach. The gambit failed, leaving Walsall with nothing left to play for, and it unlikely that Byfield will be on the touchline next season.
Harrogate faces a tough final game of the season against Barnet, who are still in the heart of the battle for a playoff spot. Getting points there will be difficult. In Walsall, though, the Sulphurites face a side whose season has meaningfully ended.
Despite looking decent last time out in beating Town’s fellow relegation candidates Barrow 3-1, Walsall are still a team adrift. They’re a side out of the playoff hunt, and with an interim manager who has seemingly failed his audition.
There’ll be no better chance for Harrogate to get three points. Not only could the points move the Sulphurites off the bottom of the table, or even out of the relegation zone, but it would keep the momentum won at Colchester going into the final day of the season.
