Stourport manager Paul Davies has admitted his players must over-achieve in order to achieve the Swifts’ ambition of becoming fixtures in the Southern League.
Davies had spent another week hunting defensive reinforcements in a bid to stem the tide of goals that have rushed into the Swifts’ net all season.
But with small crowds and a tight budget hampering the efforts of successive Swifts managers, Davies believes his best hope of avoiding relegation is to succeed on the training field.
He said: “Of course it is always an issue. People have asked me the question about what has changed for us since the start of the season, and every time I have said it’s about the standard of the opposition.
“Since we played Stourbridge at the start of the season they have gone on a fantastic run and they are now third in the league.
“It is difficult to compete with clubs like that and it takes a lot of hard work, but the good thing is that people at the club are generally aware of the challenge and have been very supportive.
“I’m working for a fantastic committee who appreciate how difficult it can be at times.
“Teams like Stourbridge and Aylesbury are big clubs at our level and there is no way we can hope to compete with them on a financial level.
“So what you have to try to do is work with what you have and make the most of what you have.
“You have to work hard with the players at the club and try to make them better and always keep looking to strengthen if the chance arises.”
Davies made a move in the transfer market this week when he recruited keeper Chris Jay following his release by Halesowen.
And the Swifts boss hopes the arrival of the highly-rated youngster will help provide some solidity.
He said: “We’re very aware we have a lot of young players in our side, especially at the back, and naivety can be a problem at times when it comes to conceding goals.
“But we’ve been working hard to try to cut down the number of goals we’re conceding.”
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