Hartlepool United 2, Aldershot Town 0

RELEGATION-threatened Aldershot Town face the National League’s in-form side on Saturday – and boss Danny Searle is after a big reaction after a “poor” defeat at Hartlepool.

The Shots host a Boreham Wod side who have put together a 14-game unbeaten run to fly up to fifth place in the table and into the heart of the play-off picture.

By contrast, the Shots slipped to 18th – just three points above the relegation zone – after a toothless defeat in the north-east at the Victoria Ground as goals from Luke Molyneux and Mark Shelton in the first 20 minutes effectively ended the game as a contest in which the Shots were always second best.

“Everything for me is about reactions,” said Searle, who saw his side’s winless run stretch to five games since a purple patch over Christmas and the new year.

“Even if you have had a positive result, how do you react after that? Do you rest on your laurels or do you go again?

“The type of performance we put in at Hartlepool was nothing like I expected. We have played 34 games now and, in my opinion, there have probably been four games this season where I would say I was as bitterly disappointed with our lack of effort and work rate as I was on Saturday.

“Saturday’s performance was almost back to the days of that little run we had where we couldn’t get any points on the board, we were so poor. There were no excuses, we were just awful.”

Boreham Wood, who last tasted defeat at home to AFC Fylde back in October, seem sure to test severely the Shots’ ability to bounce back, but Searle is confident his young side are equal to the challenge.

“I remember when we got a point at Boreham Wood. It wasn’t a particularly good game but I said at the time that it was a good point and a clean sheet,” said the boss.

“Everyone said that we should be beating teams like Boreham Wood, but they are now unbeaten in 14 games. They are the most in-form team in the league and have the joint best away record in the league (with leaders Barrow) so Saturday will be a really, really tough test for us.

“But when the boys are focused and doing what they know they should be doing, listening to instructions and sticking to the game plan, then I have no fear of playing anyone in this league.”

The Shots will be without top scorer Mo Bettamer at the EBB Stadium on Saturday after the striker was injured in a tussle with Hartlepool skipper Ryan Donaldson, and Searle knows that he desperately needs to shore up his side before the non-league transfer window closes on March 26.

“We know how tight the league is and how hard it is and I think the loss of the players that we lost and the unfortunate situation of the players that we tried to bring in that didn’t work out has not helped us, and that’s down to us as a staff to make sure we work hard to get some more players in,” said Searle.

“We need them, the squad needs them. It’s important to refresh and bring some new faces in, but it’s hard to get the right people. We have to find the round pegs for all those round holes.

“And we want to bring in inspirational people regardless of whether they come straight into the team or not, people who will come in and motivate the dressing room.”

The boss is also hoping a campaign to ‘Fill the East Bank’ will reap immediate dividends with a big and noisy crowd at the EBB on Saturday for the visit of Boreham Wood.

“The proof of the pudding will be in the eating but I’m confident that this squad is more than capable of staying in this league,” said Searle.

“This is the period of time when you really need your fans. We need a big crowd behind us, and even when there are spells in the game when things aren’t going our way, and there will be, we need them to stay behind us.

“The fans that travelled to Hartlepool last Saturday were outstanding from start to finish and if we can bring that mentality to the home game on Saturday then you might just get that little extra five or ten per cent out of the boys. It creates a situation where it’s a tough place for teams to come and take points off us, which it has been, we haven’t lost at home in a long time, and I think that the fans play a massive part in that.”