MANAGER Danny Forrest insists Silsden are in the best place they’ve been in for “a long, long time” and is confident his players can recover from the disappointment of their eight-game unbeaten streak ending.

They lost to second-placed Hemsworth Miners Welfare 3-2 in their last Toolstation Northern Counties East League Premier Division match on December 28, but that was their first defeat for over two months.

Before that though, Silsden lost seven on the bounce, and it was Barton Town, the visitors to the Cobbydale Construction Stadium this Saturday, whose 3-0 win in the reverse fixture kickstarted that awful run.

Forrest said: “I was disappointed because (after that) we didn’t react well to adversity. But towards the end of that run we were unlucky, and we didn’t get what we deserved out of games.

“I felt it was coming and since then the response has been brilliant.

“It sounds silly because we’re sat just below mid-table at the moment but I feel something building here. I think we’re in the best place we’ve been (as a club as a whole) for a long, long time.”

Forrest conceded that Barton were in a similar situation though, saying: “Two months ago, they appointed the manager (Craig Denton) who won this league with Worksop Town last season.

“They have more of an identity now and they’ve had some good results. They’re strong, organised, and they’ll be looking at getting up the league themselves. It will be a tough game, but we’ve got to back ourselves and go into it with confidence.”