McDonald calls for one last big push from fans as Poppies face Halesowen crunch

Kettering host top five rivals Halesowen Town in a monumental showdown at Latimer Park on Saturday (ko 3pm).

The Poppies dropped to fifth in the Pitching-In Southern League Premier Central on Wednesday night, with Needham Market winning 1-0 at Stourbridge to leapfrog McDonald's side and Halesowen, who are now sixth.

It is incredibly tight at the top, with five teams still vying for a fourth and fifth-place finish.

The Poppies have the advantage of knowing their fate is very much still in their own hands, and a win on Saturday - allied with other results going their way - could see them secure a play-off place.

But a defeat will see Kettering on the outside looking in going into their final game of the regular season next weekend, and McDonald believes a packed-out Latimer Park can play its part in helping his team get the win they need.

"We need the fans again on Saturday," McDonald told the Kettering Town YouTube channel after Tuesday's 1-1 draw with Redditch United.

"I know we have had loads of home games, and they have been coming out in good numbers. They have been brilliant, but we really need them.

"We really need everybody to stick together as well, because we are going to have bad spells in games and we, need everybody to be calm and push these boys on.

"We are one win away from being in a place that we dreamt of when I came in, and what the fans wanted at the start of the season."

Halesowen, who were beaten 3-1 at home by champions Harborough Town last weekend, have been in and around the top five all season, and boast the league's top scorer in 31-goal striker Jason Cowley.

"It is a big game for both clubs and we will be playing a very good team that have the top goalscorer in the league," said McDonald.

"If we give him chances he will put the ball in the back of the net.

"They have good ball players, they have pace, they are a physical side and they are up there for a reason.

"If we are not 100 per cent at it then it is going to be a really difficult afternoon.

"We could have done more on Tuesday, so we have to dust ourselves down and go into Saturday ready to go to work."

And McDonald is warning his players they can't keep relying on late goals, having scored in stoppage time to beat Worcester last Saturday and then draw with Redditch in midweek.

"On Saturday the game was petering out to be 1-1 and Blaine Rowe has popped up with a last-minute winner, and on Tuesday we got a last-minute equaliser," said the Poppies boss.

"We have that and we can score at any minute, that's us, but we can't keep using the get-out-of-jail card, we need to start putting the ball in the net earlier on.

"We are hard to play against when we are winning, we know that, but at the minute we are not making sides have to come on to us so that we can then hurt them.

"But we are looking forward to what will be a big occasion on Saturday."