About a month ago, I looked forward to the mid Jan- mid Feb period and reckoned that it was a crucial period, as we played tough games against teams in mid-to-upper table, including some difficult away fixtures.
My point, really, was that this was a time to dig in, stay in touch and make sure we kept the scoreboard ticking over. It looked like a run where we could easily go onto a losing streak.
Happily, that didn't happen. Defeats were followed by gritty performances, and the Rotherham win - a welcome 3 points after a couple of draws - meant that we probably just about came out even over that period. Won 2, lost 2, drew 3: a 6/10 result, given the strength of the opposition.
But if we're going to kick on, and get into the play-offs we're going to need to improve again, certainly in terms of points scoring.
Morecambe, Lincoln, Hereford and Stockport - our next four fixtures - are all games against weak opposition (though Lincoln are improving ominously). Yes, three of them are away, but I'm not sure that we can afford to go into this run with an "away team mentality".
We really need to attack, in the belief that we can win all those games. Not to say that we WILL win those games, but we'd be better off winning 2 and losing 2 than losing 1 and drawing 3.
Win three, as we should be capable of: Hereford at home, and two of the three away games - and we'll almost certainly be in the play-off places, on 53 odd points, come our trip to Port Vale on Saturday 12.
After that, we have 6 home games out of 10. And an away game at Barnet. Win 5 of those games and we'd be on 68 points, leaving us just needing to scrap 3 or 4 points from the remaining 4 away games at Shrewsbury, Vale, Bury and Accrington to make it up to 72 points and an almost certain play-off place.
Of course, things will certainly work out very differently, in terms of individual results, but we don't need to get any shock results: just win most of our home games, beat a couple of weak sides away and pick up the odd point away to better sides.
What are we going to need to do to achieve that? Well, having given up on our set-pieces altogether (do we practise at all?), there are two or three other things which need to come along a bit:
1/ Beano's form. He's our top scorer, but his form in front of goal is seriously patchy. I'm not sure we can afford him to need four chances for every goal he scores. Not if we're going to win away games.
2/ Our central defence. It's good on paper, but still leaks bafflingly soft goals, the one against Rotherham being a case in point. They need to get nastier.. to commit fouls higher up the pitch, to be willing to throw themselves around, to do everything possible to keep a clean sheet.
3/ Our inconsistent full-backs need to be at their best. We're a different side with a flying Damian Batt involved. It gives the dreaded 4-3-3 some much-needed width, and prevents the opposition pressing us back, because our midfield and central defence have extra passing options.
Most of the rest of the team is consistent enough - the CBs, Batt and Constable at their best and we'll make it, I reckon. A stuttering Beano, gaffe-prone Batt and a soft CB partnership and we'll fall short, no matter what the quality of our general play might be.