THE visit of high-flying Avro may be the immediate concern for Holker Old Boys, but player-manager Kevin Watkin is just as mindful of what is waiting around the corner for his team.

A run of four games in the space of 10 days against opponents around them at the bottom of the North West Counties League First Division North following tomorrow’s match could go a long way to defining Holker’s season.

That run starts with a trip to Chadderton on January 12, followed by matches away to Ashton Town, Daisy Hill and Nelson.

Not that Holker are writing off the clash with Avro at Rakesmoor Lane, but Watkin is well-aware those following matches are likely to have a bigger bearing on them staying clear of the bottom two.

“For me, it’s another 90 minutes under the belts to get over the Christmas period,” said Watkin, looking ahead to the visit of the division’s second-placed side

“We’ll try to get what we can out of it. We’re at home and it’s a difficult place to come, so hopefully we can get something out of it, but my main focus is the four games after it.

“You’ve got to take the points where you can and Avro is definitely a tough test - it was when we went there.

“We’ve got to knuckle down, put in a 90-minute performance rather than a 60-minute one and use it to get the minutes in our legs. We need a little bit more concentration, more match practise and trying to keep a settled team, and we’ll start to pick up more points.”

Elsewhere, the West Lancashire League returns with a full programme of fixtures tomorrow after a break over the weekend between Christmas and New Year.

That period saw the monthly awards handed out as well and one of the winners was Crooklands Casuals, who picked up the Division One team of the month accolade.

Jon Bell’s side won three of their four matches during the last month of 2018 to move up to sixth in the standings and kick off this year with a derby match away to Ulverston Rangers, who sit just below them.

Askam United need to start clawing some points back on the sides above them if they are to climb out of the bottom two, but they host second-placed Lytham Town in a tough start to the year.

Hawcoat Park host CMB and in the Premier Division, Vickerstown are at home to Burscough Richmond. Meanwhile, in Division Two, Furness Rovers host Walney Island and Furness Cavaliers are away to Longridge Town reserves.

Millom are 90 minutes away from a place in the Lancashire Amateur Cup quarter-finals and they host Elton Vale in round five.