MATT Clarke believes Redditch United’s survival showdown this weekend is the biggest game of his managerial career.
The Reds know even a win might not be enough to keep them in the Southern League Premier Central, depending on results elsewhere.
Redditch sit 18th in the Southern League Premier Central table, above the relegation zone on goal difference.
The Reds are just one goal better off than Barwell with one game left to play.
United host already-relegated Hitchin Town at the Valley Stadium and need to match or better Barwell’s result to secure safety.
Barwell entertain Spalding United who have an outside chance of finishing in the play-offs.
Redditch suffered a heavy 4-0 defeat at Banbury United on Easter Monday following a first-half collapse at Spencer Stadium.
And Clarke believes this weekend’s match is the biggest game in the club’s recent history.
Clarke said: “It is my biggest game as a manager, if you look over the five years I’ve been here, we’ve seen progression each year.
“We’ve punched above our weight for many years, we’ve hit some incredible heights.
“I came back in when we were in a real good position in sixth, we’ve lost our best players and front three, it’s been difficult.
“I want the players to have pressure and respond well to that, it’s the biggest game for the club for a long time.
“I’ll always remain positive, we have to as staff because the players need that.
“Hopefully we can get it over the line and then we can reflect on what went wrong and what we didn’t do right.
“We’ve got to concentrate on ourselves, it’s like a cup final, it’s about getting the job done for ourselves.
“It’s going to be a nervous day, it’s going to be a rollercoaster day but that’s what we’re in football for, you learn a lot from it and hopefully there’ll be positive outcomes from it.”
Reds captain Kyle Rowley added: “The [Banbury] result makes next week’s game so much more important, it’s a big game, this is a bigger game than the play-off game last season.
“We want to stay in the division, nobody wants to get relegated, we don’t want to let the fans down, the club down, ourselves down or the manager down.
“We all hear the frustration from the fans, their support is massive, if we win on Saturday, we’ve done the job, we’ve stayed up.”
United are one of four clubs hoping to stay up on the final day.
Bishop’s Stortford, who travel to Redditch’s local rivals Bromsgrove Sporting, and St Ives Town, who host play-off hopefuls Stratford Town could also drop into the relegation zone.
Only a huge goal difference swing would see St Ives relegated while both Redditch and Barwell would need to win and hope Bishop’s Stortford draw or lose to relegate the latter side.
Redditch host Hitchin on Saturday, April 26 with kick-off at 3pm at the Valley Stadium.
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