A host of absentees meant chances for some returning faces. Lewis Tolton and Leo Coggan were both missing from the midfield, along with Adam Boulter, Eddy Price, Aaron Shaw and Jake McEnery in defence, meaning the squad was severely tested.

Young Joe Lee came in and continues to impress, enjoying a solid game in centre midfield after a long layoff through illness. Dan Jelley returned also, receiving his usual rough treatment from the opposition. In defence Dan Stabik played his first game for 6 weeks, battling through a persistent ankle injury to complete 90 minutes. Lining up alongside him was Alex Mclugash, making his first team debut for the season and enjoying a confident display. In attack Town were without 33 goal striker Tom Marriott, but he was ably deputised by Joe Moscetano who had impressed off the bench against Lutterworth in his last outing.

Town have been growing a reputation for their goal scoring exploits this season but in recent weeks it’s been the defence that has really stood out. It’s now a total of 450 minutes without conceding for keeper Paul Felton and the back four. Big wins against FC GNG, Rothley, Desford, Lutterworth and Ashby have seen the goals against column stay put for almost a month.

This Saturday Sileby travel to Desford and it could be a trickier affair than the first time the sides met. Desford were easily dispatched earlier in the year, 6-0 at the Sileby Sports Ground, however new signings have seen an upturn in fortunes for the Senior League strugglers. On a notoriously difficult pitch, it’ll be another case of adjusting to the conditions as Town look to stretch their lead at the top of the table.

“We know teams can catch us on paper,” commented manager Steve Hendey, “but the more we keep our focus and stretch the lead, the harder it is for the other teams.” This time last year Town sat in second, trailing leaders Melton but with games in hand.
“We’ve been in that position before. It’s not easy to keep that belief when a few results don’t go your way. We dropped points against Rothley and Caterpillar in February and everyone thought it was over for us. It’s tough to chase it all the way. I’m confident that my lads have the experience and the willpower to keep the run going. It’s games like Saturday that can make or break a title challenge. We need to pick up all the points we can before the difficult patch we have approaching.”

They’ll need it as the next few weeks unfold. After Desford, Town face Friar Lane, Melton, Birstall and Saffron in a period that could define the outcome of their season.

“There’s no point playing it down, come the end of February, we’ll really see what we’re made of.”

You can see Sileby away at Desford on Saturday. Kick-off is 2pm.