SPENNYMOOR TOWN will be in an ideal position to challenge for a play off position in the National League North when play resumes.

Moors are sixth after easily beating Hereford United 4-0 last weekend, and hopes are high that they can go one better in the play offs this time round.

That win could be so crucial if league officials decide to go straight to play offs when circumstances allow. Another option could be to finish the season in the full, although how long that would take remains to be seen. If the Premier League wants to finish in June and start again in August, that would have a significant knock-on effect on the leagues in the system below them.

Last season Moors finished fourth in the regular schedule, then in the play-offs won at home against Altrincham and then a tense semi-final at Brackley, before losing an agonising penalty shoot out at Chorley.

Straight after that game at Victory Park, manager Jason Ainsley told his players to forget about the result, and instead concentrate on going one better in the new season. He was also quick to point out that his side weren’t automatically the title favourites, especially with so many former Football League clubs, particularly a regrouping York City under Steve Watson, in the division already.

Ironically, it has been the unknown quantity of King’s Lynn, who have become title contenders.

Moors' season could turn out to be as good as the last, if not better, as they seem to be finding their best form when it matters most. They’ll be hoping that they’ll be able to recapture that same form when fixtures restart.

If anything costs them a higher position, it will be their slow start in August, which was partly because they had to play their first three games away from home while work was carried out on the Brewery Field pitch to provide a better playing surface. The investment has been justified with an excellent home record.

It was only when they beat Chester 2-1 in their sixth league game that their season really sparked into life, and a 2-2 draw with promotion- chasing King’s Lynn demonstrated their great potential in early September.

They had another long unbeaten run of 13 matches starting from that King’s Lynn draw in September that carried them all the way through to Boxing Day when they lost 2-1 to Darlington.

One of Moors’ biggest strengths in this last decade has been the strong sense of togetherness that manager Jason Ainsley has encouraged, and that has paid dividends.

Their strong team spirit has seen them climb from the second division of the Northern League – Ainsley often refers to a particular game at Penrith that clinched promotion – through the Northern League first division and two Northern Premier League divisions to get where they are now, pushing to reach the top tier of non-league football.

That was demonstrated in their recent game against Telford, when they harshly lost defender James Curtis to a red card before half time and then went 3-1 down, but came roaring back in the second half to draw 3-3 and nearly win the game. That game was part of a seven-match unbeaten run that put them on the fringe of the play offs at the time.

There have been several outstanding performers such as midfielder Rob Ramshaw, in the team, but striker Glen Taylor has once again been the talisman.

He has been prolific in two spells with the club, and Moors will be grateful he turned down overtures from higher clubs to stay at the Brewery Field and then complete a century of goals, his 100th goal coming in a 2-1 win at Gloucester. Until the break, he had scored 24 goals, 17 of them in the league, six in the FA Cup – including four in a game against Ashton United – and one in the FA Trophy.

Ainsley strengthened his squad during the summer by bringing in six new players, several of whom have established themselves in the squad – defenders Carl Magnay and Nathan Buddle from Hartlepool United and Blyth Spartans respectively, striker Dan Roberts from Hereford, and arguably the best of all, winger Ben McKenna from Chester.

Two other signings, Dan Ward and Rees Greenwood, have since left the club for pastures new, but two more recent ones have been impressive. Jason Kennedy has arrived from Hartlepool and his experience will be vital for the run in, and full back Tyler Forbes signed from AFC Fylde, who has shown an unexpected goalscoring prowess by scoring long range efforts in three successive games, one of which crowned the fightback against Telford. On that basis, he might score an even more important goal later in the season.

The rebuilding has worked to the extent that Moors are the highest scoring home team in the league with 45 goals and have picked more points at home than anybody else. Their haul of 39 points is more than even the top two of Kings Lynn and York. Their away form has let them down though – last season they won 11 on their travels, this season they have been victorious on only three occasions.

If they can go through the rest of the season unbeaten, then they could experience victory in the play off final instead of agonising defeat.