T’S a new year but Yate Town manager Craig Laird has emphasised how crucial the next four matches are for the Bluebells as they go into the ‘business end of the season’.

To that extent, Laird hopes that the re-signing of Lodge Road favourite Lewis Haldane will inspire his strikers to find the back of the net a lot more as they look to mount a surge towards the Evo-Stik Southern League Division One South and West play-off places.

Yate are 18 points off the top five, which will put them into the play-offs, and face three massive matches in successive weeks against sides below them.

They start with a trip to bottom-but-one Burnham on Saturday before facing AFC Totton, who are one place below the Bluebells in mid-table, the following weekend, and then take a trip to 20th placed Wantage Town.

Laird will be looking for maximum points from all three encounters but a slip against any of them could throw a spanner into the works, particularly with a tough encounter with high-flying North Leigh to end the month on January 30.

The Yate manager said that, despite Burnham’s status just above bottom-of-the-table Bashley, the clash will be a ‘tough match’.

He added: “They are in the bottom two but they will be difficult opposition. It’s the business end of the season now and teams who are in relegation areas are trying to get out of there and sides at the top are trying to get into the play-offs.

“These are interesting times and the next month will show where teams will end up in the league.

“We will give it a big push. We have not given up on anything yet but it’s a tough month and if we can get through it with a couple of wins, we will have be able to have a little punt at the play-offs.

“We have competed in nearly every game we have played and a little bit of luck we need with a couple of wins will do us well.

“We can rise up the table if we win and a team always comes from nowhere each season and gets a run of wins,” added Laird.

Yate have been finding the back of the net recently, with George Box hitting late goals to secure the win over Larkhall Athletic last Saturday and a draw with Mangotsfield United on Boxing Day, but Laird is keen to have more fire power to assist strikers Darren Edwards and Jake Jackson.

That is why he has brought Haldane back to Lodge Road and hopes he will be available for Saturday after his transfer was held-up for Yate’s New Year’s Day encounter.

The striker moved on from Yate to join Frome Town in November 2014 after a somewhat acrimonious split under previous manager Rob Cousins, who claimed he was in a ‘comfort zone’.

Laird, though, thinks Haldane can bring a lot to the club and said: “We didn’t want to lose Lewis last season but he left before I arrived but he’s back now and he will bring experience to the team, especially the young strikers in our squad.

“He will help with their development and this gives us competition up front and we hope he can bang in the goals as he did before he left.”

Laird has also insisted that there are no immediate plans to bring in more players but did not rule it out.

“If a good player became available, then we can always look to sign them.”