National League Round-Up

It was a busy night in the National League on Tuesday as seven matches took place, with implications at both ends of the table.
Barrow took a huge step towards safety as Asa Hall’s second half goal gave The Bluebird’s a crucial away victory at Guiseley. Victory saw  Ady Pennock’s side climb out of the drop zone and move two points above 21st placed Woking.
As well as holding a points advantage over The Cards, Barrow also have a crucial game in hand over their relegation rivals and will now fancy their chances of beating the drop. There were contrasting emotions at Nethermoor Park however as defeat confirmed Guiseley’s relegation from the National League, after a three year stint in the division.
In other news at the bottom of the table, Hartlepool secured their National League status after beating Justin Edinburgh’s Leyton Orient side at Victoria Park. Louis Laing netted the only goal of the game as Pools’ caretaker manager Matthew Bates successfully guided the club to safety. Victory left Hartlepool in 17th place in the table and an unassailable seven points above the drop zone.
At the other end of the table Aldershot moved into third position with a 1-0 home victory over mid-table Gateshead. Scott Rendell’s strike on the stroke of half time was enough to grab all three points as Gary Waddock’s side look to gain automatic qualification for the play-off semi-finals.
Aldershot were able to leapfrog Sutton United who fell to a hugely disappointing 2-1 defeat at Maidenhead United. First half goals from Harry Pritchard and Jake Goodman cancelled out Craig Eastmond’s late consolation to condemn Sutton to a fourth defeat in their last five league games. Paul Doswell’s side will need to quickly turn around their disastrous recent form if they are to have any chance of re-igniting their promotion bid.
Tranmere kept a firm grip on second position as Andy Cook netted his eighth goal in five games to give Micky Mellon’s side a fifth straight victory. Despite Rovers’ superb recent form, they have been unable to catch league leaders Macclesfield who continue to be on the cusp of securing the National League title after cantering to a seven point lead at the summit of the table.
Ebbsfleet’s charge towards the play-offs continued as Daryl McMahon’s side extended their unbeaten run to 10 league games. Kenny Clarke’s late goal at Eastleigh moved the Kent club up to seventh position and pushed Wrexham United out of the play-off positions.
Finally, Bromley maintained their faint hopes of making the play-offs after recording a comfortable 3-1 home win against Dagenham & Redbridge. Two goals from Jack Holland and an injury time strike from Frankie Raymond gave Bromley all three points and left them just four points adrift of the play-off positions. The result also essentially ended Dagenham’s hopes of reaching the end of season promotion lottery.
With Sutton facing Aldershot and Wrexham playing against Fylde next week, there are some exciting games coming up that could go either way. Make sure to place your bets right and make use of a bonus code.