TAUNTON Town head of football Rob Dray has called on his side to make last Saturday’s backs-to-the-wall performance at Premier South leaders Chesham United a springboard for the rest of the campaign.

The Peacocks secured a 1-1 draw, despite being without top scorer Andrew Neal and having the play the last 20 minutes a man down, after Shane White’s red card.

“It’s a great point - in some respects it felt like a win,” Dray told the County Gazette.

Taunton’s attention now turns to a home fixture tomorrow, with Harrow Borough the visitors to the Cygnet Health Care Stadium (3pm).

The visitors are 16th in the table, after a horror run of form - two wins and 16 defeats in 22 games - between September and December last year.

It means they are perched precariously above the relegation zone, whereas the fifth-placed Peacocks are eager to pick up a win which will keep them in the play-off spots.

Dray said: “They [Harrow] have had some up-and-down results, so we’re not quite sure what we’ll get from them.

“If we turn up like we did on Saturday [at Chesham], then I think we’ll be OK.

“It’s a home game for us, and we’ve got to start picking up wins to put pressure on the teams around us.”

Taunton will have versatile defender White available - his red card from the Chesham game being rescinded following a successful appeal - and midfielder Ollie Chamberlain is fully fit again after illness.

Bristol City loanee Ryley Towler should also be in contention, the midfielder having been recalled to play for his parent club’s Under-18s last Saturday.

Striker Neal - who has 16 league goals this season - remains a doubt, however.

“We’re not sure about Rocky,” said Dray.

“His knee is not quite right and we don’t want to rush him.”

Dray is looking to add one more player to his squad, following the recent signings of Luke Spokes and Ross Staley, but said it was a “slow mover” and nothing is confirmed as yet.

The opposition

Last season saw Harrow Borough finish just a couple of spots outside of the Premier South promotion places.

That was despite the Boro getting hammered 7-0 in this equivalent fixture in December 2018, a game which saw the visitors have three men sent off before half-time, and Ed Palmer score a free-kick from inside his own half.

Things have been tougher for Harrow this campaign, as they find themselves down in 16th and just four points clear of the relegation zone.

They started well, winning four of their first six games and drawing the other two, with one of those draws being 1-1 at home to Taunton.

Ben Adelsbury gave the Peacocks the lead, only for George Moore to equalise for the hosts.

Things went downhill fast from there, however, and Harrow tumbled down the league table.

Twenty-two games (in all competitions) between September 10 and December 21 brought only two wins and 16 defeats.

They stopped the rot with three wins and a draw around the New Year, but the last two games have seen them lose to Blackfield & Langley (2-0) and Hartley Wintney (4-1).

Boro manager Steve Baker will be desperate for his side to tighten up at the back (they have the division’s third worst defensive record, having conceded 50 goals in 28 games), ahead of an intimidating run of fixtures.

Their next five league games see them face Taunton, Poole Town, Chesham United, Truro City and Salisbury - five of the Premier South’s current top eight teams.