McAughtrie setting high standards

Stafford Rangers defender Craig McAughtrie has urged his team-mates to keep their standards high even if a big stride toward safety is achieved this weekend.

Saturday's home game against Vauxhall Motors, who occupy the last relegation place, extends a big chance to strike a further nail in the visitors' coffin, and a Rangers win would put them 11 points clear of their opponents with a game in hand.

That would take a big weight off the players shoulders, going into Bank Holiday Monday's trip to Solihull Moors with one foot in the door of the Blue Square North for next season.

But McAughtrie wants to see the team fighting for every ball and point in Saturday's game and the five that follow, culminating in the trip to Workington on April 24.

The task in hand is as big as game as they have come this season, and the 29-year-old warns that losing is simply not an option.

He said: "I think if we stop them from winning this weekend that should just about see us safe, so the minimum target is one point out of the game. We seem to perform against the better teams and not against the lesser sides, and that will have to change on Saturday.

"But, even if we finish the weekend pretty much safe from the drop, our challenge should then be to get some good results between now and the end of the season so we have a bit of momentum to take into the summer.

"I don't want to end the season saying 'well, we finished one place above the relegation places,' because I would be ashamed of that. That is my motivation to go on, and it should be the same for everyone.

"It's about consistency, and that is something we have lacked."