Spennymoor Town’s poor form has left the promotion door open for Avenue but Bower was cautious, saying: “We’ve given ourselves a chance. We’ve just got to do our job and win our game.
We take on Kidderminster Harriers tomorrow, knowing that they could be facing the same opponents in a play-off clash in less than a week’s time.
“I don’t think it’s any extra motivation for us to play Kidderminster. When you come in with a late run like we have, you just take whoever you get!
“It will be a strange one for Kidderminster though because they could effectively influence who they face in the play-offs.
Bower admitted that he was unsure at first about the two extra play-off places this season, but he had been won over by the idea.
“I think it’s really good how it’s kept the season going. Nearly every game last weekend had something riding on it and I think that’s fantastic for the league and the supporters.
“I was a bit sceptical at first, and obviously it helps that we might benefit from it, but I do think that it has made the league more competitive and interesting.”
Avenue have had availability problems this season but the squad is returning to full-strength now, which would be ideal if they were to reach the play-offs.
Bower was able to start his three deadly strikers, Frank Mulhern, Oli Johnson and Adam Boyes, last weekend and he was delighted as they spearheaded the 3-1 win over Harrogate Town.
He said: “Frank’s done well in that wide position in a front three. His physical strength and ability in the air is a good outlet for us. “There are few better than Oli in this league when he’s on form. He’s back in the swing of it after his suspension and we saw a top-drawer performance in the second half.
“And Boyesy works hard, it’s like having two strikers up front! The formation worked well against Harrogate but we’ll probably look to rejig one or two things against Kidderminster to suit that game.”
Bring On Saturday
Mark