Interim Manager Steve Thompson has challenged his players to take their recent improved form on the road, starting with tonight’s visit to Kidderminster Harriers.
Having registered back-to-back wins at Boundary Park, Latics now face two consecutive away fixtures in the space of five days.
Thompson has been pleased with the application of the team since he took temporary charge and says the focus is on maintaining the standards of recent performances.
“We’ve had two great results over the last week with six goals scored and two clean sheets,” he said.
“We’re pleased with how we have performed recently and we’ve now got to show that we can do it away from Boundary Park.
“Any away fixture in our league is tough, Kidderminster are new to this division and they will present us with different scenarios that we’ve got to deal with but we should be confident.
“In possession, I feel we can still be better and I want us to trust ourselves a little bit more on the ball, because when we get that belief in the side and with the strikers we’ve got, we’re a good attacking threat.
“Over the last week, we’ve worked on making sure our strikers and wide players have got good movement, and that they make the right decisions when they’re in the final third.
“As a team, we feel like we’re in a good place at the moment. We’re scoring goals, creating chances and looking solid, so we’ll go into the game with a lot of confidence.
“With the away trips coming up, we know that we can’t let our standards drop because we all want to keep this run going.”
The visit to Aggborough comes in the middle of a busy schedule which sees Latics play six games in the space of three weeks.
But with the momentum of successive wins, Thompson says the players should relish the chance to get straight back into action.
“We’re in the middle of a busy run so giving the players a good opportunity to rest has been important,” he added.
“There are a couple of players we just need to check are okay after Saturday but I’m hoping everyone who played will be ready to go.
“We’ve had to top some of the lads up, and we’ve also wanted to do a good amount of work with the players who have either been on the bench or haven’t made the squad as everyone will have a role to play at some point.
“There will be times when some of the players who haven’t featured recently will be needed, so we’ve got to make sure they are up to speed when they are called upon.
“I’ve spoken a lot to the lads individually over the last week to let them know the expectations and also how we intend to approach things as they will all have a part to play.
“All of the squad were in on Monday, we went through everything we feel is necessary for the fixture and it’s now down to us to be ready.
“The work-rate of the players over the last two games has been excellent and I’m very pleased with how they have applied themselves, adapted to the formation and the different propositions we’ve faced within games.
“A constant quick turnaround is tough but the players are relishing it and I wouldn’t expect anything less after the last two results.”
Thompson is pleased that Josh Lundstram returned to full training last week but the process of managing his integration back into competitive action is ongoing.
“Josh is back training with the main group now and has had three good days with us on the grass," he added.
“He’s still in the process of getting himself back up to full speed and we’ve got to make sure that he is fully ready when he comes back.
“Josh is getting closer but he possibly needs a bounce game to get him up to speed. He looks good in training and I’m sure he will be a great asset when he returns.
“We’re mindful that Dan Ward probably came back too quickly last time and tweaked his calf but we’re hoping he could be back in training towards the end of the week.”