Alan Hardy: 'Notts County gunning for League Two top-three spot'

Alan Hardy has stressed that Notts County's destiny is still in their own hands in terms of promotion and insists that a top-three finish in League Two remains the objective.

The Magpies' league form has been patchy for a while and last week's loss to Barnet dealt a big blow, although a win against Carlisle United at Meadow Lane stabilised the ship.

With Newport County away taking place today, Hardy insists Notts must just concentrate on themselves and is looking ahead to a run of games where the promotion rivals will face each other.

"After the disappointment of Barnet last weekend, it was great to see us get back to winning ways against Carlisle on Tuesday night," Hardy wrote in the Nottingham Post.

"It may have been incredibly tense in the latter stages of the game but full credit to Kevin and the team for getting the job done.

"I can’t pretend I was cool as a cucumber when the fourth official indicated there would be seven minutes of stoppage time - where on earth all that came from I do not know - but it was a test of our resilience and concentration levels which we passed with flying colours.

"With five minutes to go in normal time, I presumed we would be heading back into the top three because Wycombe were drawing 2-2 with Swindon.

"Usually I’m constantly checking our rivals’ scores but I got so engrossed in the final stages of our game that I took my eyes away from goings on elsewhere.

"But, after our game was over, I flicked back and couldn’t believe Wycombe had scored another last-minute goal to win 3-2.

"That kept them two points ahead of us but we are hot on their heels and they will know they can’t afford to slip up because we are gunning for that top-three slot.

"Our destiny is still very much in our own hands and I would rather have it that way than be relying on other teams to do us a favour.

"We have the likes of Accrington and Wycombe still to play, which are going to be huge games. I suspect they will have a large bearing on where we finish in May.

"But right now it’s all about concentrating on ourselves, with results - not necessarily performances - the most important thing.

"I said before Tuesday’s game, when we did our pre-match Facebook live interview, that I would settle for a scrappy 1-0 win no matter how the goal was scored. It’s such an important phase of the campaign where momentum is everything."

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