Will Enfield Town have to deal with the additional burden of new manager bounce when they take on Chelmsford City tomorrow in the first of back-of-back Easter fixtures which could seal our fate?

With one of the biggest budgets in the division, the Clarets summarily sacked manager Angelo Harrop  today and replaced him on an interim basis with Ricky Holmes.

Mid-table Chelmsford theoretically remain within reach of a playoff finish but two wins out of the last seven games did for the manager less than one season into the job.

While the Clarets are looking to get back to winning ways, Town’s task is far more precarious and challenging, having been left adrift in the bottom four with a mountain to climb.

We effectively probably need to win four of our remaining five games and even then hope that others – notably Farnborough eight points ahead but also the other teams in the relegation zone – suffer a barren run-in.

The fact that we have won just two of 20 away league games so far this season and only recorded eight league victories in the whole campaign doesn’t augur well. But Gavin Macpherson certainly isn’t throwing in the towel despite last Saturday’s catastophe against Chesham.

With Xavier Benjamin 50-50 and already without long-term victim Adam Thomspon and the ineligible Paul Appiah, Town face something of a defensive crisis with Mickey Parcell even more doubtful than Xav.

 “We’ll run both up to the wire and see where we are,” said Gavin. “Who knows whether Chelmsford will have a new manager bounce. Obviously we did our homework based on someone else in charge. They’ve certainly put a very good guy in temporary charge who knows what he’s doing.”

“I honestly believe Chelmsford have a squad of players unrivalled at this level. I don’t know the ins and outs of what’s gone on there. What I do know is that we somehow have to win the game.”

“Has it crossed my mind we could be relegated on Monday? Yes because it’s not in our hands. We’ve not got the points we hoped to get and have had to play catch-up. But there are a number of reasons why you have to stay utterly committed. The main reason is this football club and the supporters. But you also have an obligation to other teams in our league.”

AW