Gainsborough Trinity boss Tom Shaw satisfied with club's progress

Tom Shaw has been pleased with how things have progressed at Gainsborough Trinity.

Trinity lie 17th in the NPL Premier Division ahead of Tuesday’s games, with their excellent home form having been negated by results being harder to come by on the road.

But with work being very much in progress, Shaw feels confident Trinity can push on in what is a very competitive league on a number of levels.

He said: “I think when you look at where we are and the resources we have relative to a lot of other clubs, we’re about on a par with where one might expect us to be at this stage.

"But we won’t rest on that. We want to be over-achievers and do better and the runs we’ve had show we can do that.

"The home form [Trinity have lost just once on their own patch this season] has been excellent and we need to continue that.

"Away from home it’s just a case of changing things to work better as there are variables we’ve struggled to adapt to at times.

"We reflect on every performance and are developing some very good young players here who I think will be a real asset to the club in the future.”

In terms of personnel, Shaw says he has a good and competitive squad to choose from.

He said: “We brought the numbers down from 23 to 17 or 18 which has made competition for places greater given we now have quality over quantity, although it can also mean we’re a bit stretched once injuries and suspensions kick in.

"Relative budgets mean we can’t offer what some clubs can to attract players but we want them here for footballing reasons as long as we can make it work financially and geographically.”

Both last Saturday’s home game with Hyde United and Tuesday’s trip to Nantwich Town were postponed for weather and FA Trophy-related reasons respectively, meaning Trinity are next in action with a trip to Morpeth Town on Saturday.

Shaw said: “I’ve got mixed feelings about not having played – one the one hand we were prepared for the three-game week, all against teams below us and the challenges that would bring.

"On the other hand it’s given us a chance to work on a few bits that were needed and to go through things in more detail than we might have been able to. We also have one or two knocks that have had more time to recover.

"Morpeth will be a really tough game. They’ve been in a false position all season due to the squad they have but they’re on a good run and picking up now under a new manager and will be a real challenge for us.”