The positive impact return of supporters can have on the Hawks
Paul Doswell believes it was no coincidence Hawks produced their 'best performance of the season' playing in front of supporters for the first time in eight months at the weekend.
And the Hawks boss is urging his side to rediscover the high standards they reached in the win over Chelmsford City when they welcome Slough under the Westleigh Park lights tomorrow night.
Doswell was delighted with how his side responded to successive defeats against Marine and Hemel Hempstead to record a 3-1 victory against the Essex side on Saturday.
The Hawks boss insisted playing in front of a crowd again - for the first time since March 7 - gave the players a welcome boost on the back of two losses on the spin.
Doswell feels the return of fans helped his squad raise their levels.
And the Hawks boss is hoping his players can produce another display of high quality for the supporters against Slough.
‘I think the return of the supporters, it’s no surprise to me, that our best performance came with the return of the supporters to the ground,' said the Hawks boss.
‘I think that the fans being there was a big, big help.
‘I think if the fans had been there against Hemel it would have been a massive help for us.
‘Just having people and an atmosphere - it made a huge difference.
‘My players, the running stats were the best they’ve been all season by a country mile, we talked this morning about that’s the standards they have now set.
‘I think, again, that was to do with having a crowd there and being more on it and at it.’
If Hawks can beat Slough they'll have collected 16 points from eight National League South matches this term.
Doswell says an average of two- points per game across the campaign would be title-winning form.
And, overall, it's been a start to the season the Hawks boss has been satisfied with.
Doswell added: ‘If we can get a win tomorrow night that’s 16 points from eight games - that’s two points a game - and that wins you a league basically.
‘There was no crisis, it was just a disappointment. We got to the second round of the FA Cup if we win tomorrow we’ll be on 16 points - in any other circumstance that would be regarded as a really, really good start to the season.’
Defender Anthony Straker starts his suspension for the visit of Slough for the red card he picked up in the FA Cup second-round defeat at Marine.
Billy Clifford is a doubt with a hamstring injury while Theo Widdrington remains out.