Burscough manager David Dempsey has outlined the importance of the Bank Holiday weekend for the Linnets.
They sit eight points clear of Skelmersdale United, who currently sit at the foot of the table, but four points for Burscough would see them mathematically safe.
This weekend they take on Irlam before facing their rivals, in Pascal Chimbonda’s side, back-to-back wins over the Easter period would cement their place in next season’s North West Counties Premier Division.
Since Dempsey replaced Conrad Prendergast earlier this year and has been tasked with steering Burscough away from the precarious position. The signs have been positive but the former Widnes and Clitheroe boss admits that the size of the task was far greater than he envisaged.
He told Off The Park: “I don’t think we appreciated the size of the challenge ahead of us with the group that we inherited, we quickly realised that after the first session and we had to bring in players quickly but deep down, we still wasn’t 100 per cent happy with what we had.
“We dipped into the loan market and dual-registration but we know they may not be here because they could be onto different things next season. We’ve had to keep improving and there’s lessons learned next year, where we stand today there’s a spine for a competitive side.
“It’s the same story as it has been all year, before we took over and were losing by multiple goals, we’ve fixed that and now we’re competitive in every game,” Dempsey added. “We’ve beaten Pilks 4-0, we come from back from 3-0 against Ramsbottom to draw 3-3 – it shows the character in the squad.
“We’re now at a stage where we can compete with any team in the league which is a massive improvement, we’re improving in terms of margins which was always a plan, it was a tough ask when we come in.
“Now we’re looking to secure Prem status for next season and seeing the season out, planning and getting a group together for next season.
“We’ll pick up more points, this weekend is huge. Irlam away will be tough then Skem which will be the toughest game we’ve had all season.
“They have to win out of four to overtake us in the league if they’ve got any chance of survival, we know how tough it’ll be but I back our lads to get us in the league next year and secure that. If we get to the stage that we’re mathematically safe, it’ll be a huge weight off everyone’s shoulders.”
