Harrogate Town v Salford City: Sulphurites won't waste time worrying about poor track record

Harrogate Town cannot afford to expend time or energy worrying about the fact that they have failed to beat Salford City in any of the previous seven meetings between the clubs.
Harrogate Town were beaten 1-0 last time Salford City visited the EnviroVent Stadium. Pictures: Matt KirkhamHarrogate Town were beaten 1-0 last time Salford City visited the EnviroVent Stadium. Pictures: Matt Kirkham
Harrogate Town were beaten 1-0 last time Salford City visited the EnviroVent Stadium. Pictures: Matt Kirkham

That is the view of Sulphurites boss Simon Weaver ahead of Saturday’s League Two showdown at Wetherby Road (3pm).

Town have lost five and drawn two against the Ammies since a 3-0 FA Trophy success at Moor Lane all the way back in December 2016.

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The two clubs went head-to-head during promotion battles in both the National League and National League North, with big-spending City doing the double over Town in both 2017/18 and 2018/19.

Harrogate Town manager Simon Weaver enjoys his side's 3-1 victory at Walsall last time out.Harrogate Town manager Simon Weaver enjoys his side's 3-1 victory at Walsall last time out.
Harrogate Town manager Simon Weaver enjoys his side's 3-1 victory at Walsall last time out.

Salford, who are owned by members of Manchester United's 'Class of '92' including David Beckham and Gary Neville, also edged to a 1-0 success on their most recent visit to North Yorkshire, 11 months ago.

Weaver’s men did however end a five-match losing streak in meetings between the clubs when Ed Francis’ last-gasp strike earned the Sulphuries a share of the spoils in a 2-2 draw away from home at the start of the year.

And, while the Town chief is keen to build on that result and performance, he insists that there is no point getting too caught up in what has gone before.

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“It does feel like we are due a win because it has been so long since that FA Trophy game,” Weaver said.

“But there is no point worrying about the fact that we haven’t beaten Salford since then, we can’t be thinking about that heading into this weekend.

“We’re coming off the back of a really good result at Walsall last Saturday, we want to keep that feel-good factor, not focus on any negatives.

“Our minds have to be on looking to build on the last performance, on making sure we stick to our game-plan and deliver in front of our own fans.

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“There’s never an easy game against Salford. They’ve got a lot of quality and a lot of Football League experience in their squad. It's another tough fixture, but it's one we are looking to win."

Town head into Saturday's fixture fifth in the League Two standings and fresh from a 3-1 success over Walsall last time out, while Salford are struggling by comparison.

Gary Bowyer's side have won just four of their first 16 league matches of the campaign and currently occupy 17th place. They were held to a 1-1 draw by bottom-of-the-table Scunthorpe in their previous outing.

Saturday's game at the EnviroVent Stadium kicks-off at 3pm.