Josh March 'deserved' to be Harrogate Town's match-winner during comeback victory at Gillingham FC
Simon Weaver said that Josh March “deserved” his match-winning moment against Gillingham, having worked so hard to force his way back into Harrogate Town’s starting line-up.
The 27-year-old found the back of the net for just the second time this season to hand the Sulphurites a 2-1 comeback victory at Priestfield on Saturday afternoon.
That goal came after March was recalled to Town’s starting XI having impressed from the substitutes’ bench during last week’s home success over Chesterfield, seeing an effort controversially ruled out for offside before playing a big part in the game’s decisive goal.
The former Stevenage man has been in and out of Weaver’s side since returning to the club on a permanent deal in August 2023, registering just once in 31 appearances last term.
And although he has hardly been prolific in his 13 games so far this season, March has done enough of late to convince his manager that he is ready to start delivering.
"Marchy has been very positive in training and I knew that he wanted a goal – and he deserved it,” Weaver said. “His work ethic was great and he affected the first ball.
"And the last two performances as well, he’s hit the post, he’s had a ‘goal’ disallowed, he set up last week's winner with a fine effort that rebounded to Dean Cornelius to win us the game. It [the goal] has been coming and I’m pleased for him.
"I think he deserves this boost and he deserves our support. He has grafted, and it’s not easy when you’re not in the team. And then when you are in the team, you want the supply, but all you can do is get your head down.
"I think that he has been working with clarity, and he knows his job and knows it well. First and foremost, he has got to be a pain for the opposition defenders, and I think that he has been just that in recent weeks, and therefore, it has felt like he really deserved his goal.”
March’s 71st-minute winner arrived after team-mate Anthony O’Connor had cancelled out Timothy Dieng’s opener.
Played clean through on the home goal by Jack Muldoon’s perfectly-weighted through-ball, the Town striker showed great composure in waiting for the right moment to slot past the advancing Jake Turner and into the bottom corner.
"Sometimes, when you’ve got more time, it’s more difficult because you could have a mindset where you overthink it and worry about it,” Weaver said of March’s finish.
“But, I just felt that he looked so certain that he was going to score.”