Jack Muldoon aiming to propel Harrogate Town to top-three finish

The 30-year-old forward has found the back of the net 11 times so far this term, but has set his sights on beating last season’s tally of 17.

And with Town currently second in the National League standings, Muldoon knows that if he can add another seven goals in the coming months, then the likelihood is that his team will continue to challenge at the top of the table.

“I’m quite pleased with my return so far, but I do wish I’d scored more,” he said.

“This time last year I had a similar amount, but I should already be on 16 or 17 this season with the chances I’ve had.

“It’s no good dwelling on that however, I just want to try and go one better than last season and get 18 or 19.

“That would mean me scoring another seven or eight in the space of the next 14 matches. To do that would be a pretty good effort and it would also probably mean that as a team we’d still be doing quite well.”

Town finished seventh in the National League in 2018/19, and just like with his own personal goal-scoring aim, Muldoon revealed that the club are also looking to beat their previous best.

“We made the play-offs last year, so we’re desperate to do better and get into the top-three this time,” he added.

“If you finish between fourth and seventh it’s a massive task to get through the play-offs. You basically need to somehow beat three very good sides in the space of about a week.

“With that in mind, we really want to finish in the top three and give ourselves a better chance of going up.”

Muldoon has been paired with veteran Jon Stead in recent weeks following an injury to Mark Beck, his strike partner during the majority of the first half of the season.

And Town's top-scorer believes that a decent understanding is blossoming between the two of them.

"Jon's career says everything you need to know about him. He's a very good player and I think we've been doing okay as a partnership," Muldoon added.

"He gives me that extra work-rate up top and because he's a different type of player to Becky, who is quite unique, that encourages us play the ball on the deck a bit more.

"Personally, I like balls in behind, into the channels or into my feet or chest. That's what suits my game best.

"We have to choose the right moments to go direct. Against Wrexham last weekend, too many balls were down the throat of [Shaun] Pearson and that's just what he'll have wanted.

"I'll always do my best when it's played to me above head height, but my best usually isn't good enough.

"When we go to Aldershot on Saturday, we'll need to squeeze higher up the pitch so that we have more players closer to each other when we have the ball in the final third."