PAUL Cox expects a tough 10 days at Holker Street as Barrow AFC prepare for three home matches in quick succession.


INJURY DOUBT Dan Pilkington has a thigh problem which could rule him out of tomorrow's match against Braintree CHRIS VAUGHAN Cox’s side face play-off pushing Braintree Town tomorrow, with Forest Green Rovers and Boreham Wood heading north soon after.

It is a key spell of matches for a side who now find themselves only four places and eight points above the National League relegation zone.

Cox is hopeful his side can step up to the task, but knows the teams heading to Holker Street will be eager to collect points to help them towards their own goals.

“Since I have been at the club, it just seems where the only game when we have played a side who are realistically outside the top 10 was at Welling,” he said.

“We seem to be playing teams who are going for promotion – the Gatesheads of this world, Woking, teams who are geared to go for the play-offs.

“Once again in the next two games we’ve got teams with aspirations at the top end. Braintree have had a fabulous season, they’re on 50 points, while Forest Green are in a two-horse race to win the championship with Cheltenham.

“They are two tough tests, but there is this learning curve and there were large parts of our game against Cheltenham which were very good in terms of our second-half performance.

“But we’ve got to get rid of this lack of concentration, which seems to cost us. If we get over that, we will be competitive and we will win more than we lose. It’s just those little lapses of concentration against the better teams which we are getting undone by.

“I’m looking forward to the matches. We’ve got a couple of new players in who we want to see how they do.”

Cox is set to field loan signings Michael Donohue, Ben Tomlinson and Dan Rowe tomorrow for their AFC debuts.

Tomlinson and Donohue were signed last week, but have been made to wait for their bows by the postponement of the match at Eastleigh, while Rowe was brought in on Thursday after Niall Cowperthwaite was diagnosed with a season-ending knee problem.

Barrow also have doubts over Jordan Williams (hamstring), Dan Pilkington (thigh) and Mo Fofana.

“All three are 50/50 going into Saturday and we will give them right until the last minute to try and prove their fitness,” said Cox.

“We know there is a lot of football to be played in the 10 to 12 weeks we have left, so we have to be mindful of not just keeping them for one game, but keeping them for the majority of the games. We have to be 100 per cent right with our decision-making on them.”