18/4/03 - Turner urging players to finish on a high

The Welsh non-league international midfielder missed the 1-0 defeat at Halifax Town last week but is likely to come back into contention as manager Graham Turner seeks to finish the season on a high.

Despite seeing the Bulls' play-off hopes disappear, Turner remains determined to grasp sixth place and reinforce his squad for next season's Nationwide Conference challenge.

"It's important that we put in a decent performance and take three points," he added.

"The same goes for the Southport and Doncaster matches. We desperately wanted to go into the Doncaster match within touching distance of them but we came up short. But we can still finish the season on a high."

Turner admitted to being unhappy with the way his side's play-off hopes collapsed at Halifax last week, especially

cially considering the magnitude of the occasion.

A solitary goal condemned them to defeat but it proved fatal to Hereford's slim play-off ambitions.

"In the first half I did not think that we were performing anywhere near the level we should have been given the importance of the game," he said.

"We had played well in our previous match against Burton so, with Paul Parry out injured, we kept the same team and brought in another left-sided player but it did not work out."

The Bulls will be confident of beating Leigh having already defeated them 2-0 in October with goals from Matt Clarke and Parry.

However the over-riding feeling is one of disappointment at Edgar Street with the Bulls having been for so long in pole position to claim one of the play-off slots.

Turner admits that despite the brave push for promotion they still need to improve things but still had plenty of praise for his young squad.

"It is without doubt the youngest and most talented we have had since coming into the Conference," he said.

"The nucleus of the squad is here and if we can bring in the right players then we can look forward to next season with optimism."

FORMCAST: Bulls to win 3-0.