CHIPPENHAM Town secured four points from two matches over the Bank Holiday weekend – but manager Gary Horgan was left with a tinge of disappointment after the Bluebirds failed to scoop all six.
Chippenham battled to a goalless draw away at Braintree Town on Saturday before goals from Owen Windsor and Matt McClure helped the Bluebirds claim victory at home to Slough Town two days later.
Horgan’s men currently sit eighth in the National League South table, five points off top spot and in the same breath as non-league giants Yeovil Town and Torquay United at the right end of the league.
Despite the positive sequence, Horgan admitted life could be even sweeter for Chippenham ahead of Saturday’s trip to struggling Dover Athletic.
Horgan said: “Across the weekend, we were really pleased with four points.
“Saturday, on reflection, feels like two points dropped. We had much the better chances in the second half, we were much the better side in the second half.
“They may argue they created a lot of chaos in the box with long throws and deep crosses, but for the most part, we controlled the game and had four or five really good chances.
“But we were really pleased with how we responded to that first half on Saturday over the course of the next three halves.
“On Monday, it was a really good performance. We controlled the game really well, and it was nice to hear the Slough management and fans say some really nice things as well.
“So it was a really good weekend in terms of performances and points as well.”
Chippenham’s first six games have garnered three wins and a draw which, if multiplied across the full campaign, would leave the Bluebirds on over 70 points come May – likely to be enough for a play-off place.
Aiming to emulate his side’s achievement from the end of the 2021-22 season, where a stunning run of form booked Chippenham’s place in the post-season, Horgan highlighted why a strong August is so important.
He said: “You do need to make a good start – from a couple of aspects.
“You can psychologically be anchored towards the bottom ahead of the FA Cup qualifying games which are coming up.
“If you do alright in that, you can start to drop down the table – albeit with games in hand.
“Players want to look at the table and see – from a psychological perspective – that they are a good team and the results do mirror the performances.
“It’s also just good to get off to a good start because the more points you can amass now, the more chance you have of achieving your goals for the season.”
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