Toby Sims' goal against Rochdale AFC a sign that Harrogate Town defender is improving as an attacking force

Toby Sims was named Harrogate Town's man of the match following another all-action display against Rochdale on Bank Holiday Monday. Pictures: Matt Kirkham

The vast majority of the 25-year-old’s best work has come in and around his own penalty area, where his ultra-committed approach to his defensive work has not only made him a fans’ favourite, but also earned him a two-year contract extension.

But, Bank Holiday Monday saw him doing the business at the opposite end of the field, netting with an accomplished first-time finish to earn the Sulphurites a 1-1 draw at home to Rochdale in what was their final fixture of the 2022/23 campaign.

And the former Pittsburgh Riverhounds right-back feels that his 74th-minute equaliser from Kazeem Olaigbe’s pin-point cross backs up his own feeling that he is improving as an attacking force.

Toby Sims is congratulated after netting Harrogate Town's 74th-minute equaliser against Rochdale.

"I think that as time has gone on, I’ve got more confidence to go and get forward. It’s grown each and every game,” Sims told the Harrogate Advertiser.

"I just saw Kazeem get the ball and you know what he can do when it’s at his feet, he can produce things that are pretty special, so I’m just glad that he saw me coming and put it on a plate for me.

"I had missed one from about two yards out in the first half, so I needed to make up for that one. I just tried to keep it low, it was wet anyway so it skidded nicely off the surface and it went in, so I can’t complain.

"I was buzzing to see it go in the back of the net. It felt great, but it was even better to get one at a good time for us as a team. We needed a goal to make sure that we didn’t finish the season on a loss after all the graft that we have put in over the last few months.

"So it was nice to get it, but really I’m pleased to score for the team so that we didn’t end on a defeat. The last month-and-a-half we have had some unbelievable results and we want to take that momentum into next season.”

Reflecting on Monday’s draw with a bottom-of-the-table Rochdale side whose relegation out of the Football League was confirmed a couple of weeks earlier, Sims said that although pleased not to lose the game, he and his team-mates were disappointed not to take maximum points.

"We’ve grabbed a point, but we should have won, we know that we should have won this game,” he added.

"We should have played better, we weren’t great on the day, but again we have dug deep, which is something we’ve all been doing together in recent weeks, both individually and collectively.

"We know that we had to do it so that we stayed in the Football League and it’s been hard, but it comes with the job and today we just needed to give it one last push.”

Monday’s draw with Dale means that Town finish the season with a run of just one defeat in 10 matches and end their third campaign as a Football League club 19th in the table.