Harrogate Town 'deserved' to beat League Two leaders Bromley FC, insists Simon Weaver after stalemate

The Sulphurites had to settle for a point at Wetherby Road after a hard-fought encounter ended goalless, but they certainly performed well enough over the course of the 90 minutes to have finished up with what would have been their third victory in four matches.

Weaver’s men belied their lowly position with an impressive first-half performance, which they built on after the interval when they really took the game to their visitors.

After Jack Evans had forced a good save out of Ravens stopper Grant Smith and Ellis Taylor had been denied by a fine Jude Arthurs block on the follow up, Reece Smith went closer still to breaking the deadlock when he cracked a snap-shot against a post.

Taylor was then thwarted from a tight angle by Grant Smith having engineered himself a sight of goal following a clever nutmeg on a Bromley defender.

And, although far from disappointed at taking a point off the side whom he believes will end up being crowned league champions, the Harrogate boss was of the opinion that his players created enough to warrant taking all three.

“We just deserved the win, didn’t we,” he told BBC Radio York. “We were on top for large parts.

“I think it was a great afternoon’s work from the players. They were outstanding to a man. We were flowing, there was some tremendous football played out there.

"The players have risen to the challenge. So I am delighted.”

On what he felt Town did particularly well against opponents who are now unbeaten in 15 League Two matches and had won six of their previous seven on the road, Weaver added: “You have got to be up for the fight, physically.

“You have got to match what they do. Bromley are the second lowest in the league in terms of possession, but they are top of the league in terms of physicality – and points.

"And so, what we had to do was try to complete physically, then get the ball down and play, and play quickly and be slick with it, because that gets the best out of the talented players that we have got.

"We have got some good footballers and we are not just going to crash-bang our way to survival. There were passages of play when people weren’t rushing it, the midfielders were on it, they were having an extra touch, finding the widemen.

"We’ve played top of the league and had 25 shots, but were just missing that last element. But I am really pleased and proud.”

Saturday’s result, combined with Barrow’s 3-2 defeat at Fleetwood, means that Harrogate now sit just a point shy of 22nd place, and sit two ahead of bottom side Newport.