JOINT Bewdley Town manager Bryan Lacey believes Saturday’s battling 4-2 win over Lye in the West Midlands League Premier Division is a sign of their improvement, writes Ioannis Makarounas.

Saturday’s victory, secured by two second half goals, ensured that they are now unbeaten in the last five league games and moved them into a mid-table spot.

Lacey is sure the win highlights a real improvement in his side and hopes the squad take that into their next league game against Wednesfield on Saturday (3pm kick-off).

He said: “We had a great start and were 2-0 up at half-time, thanks to Craig Webb and Steve Holt. They then came into the game second half and levelled it. We made a couple of substitutions, Oliver Smith and Grant Joshua who got our goals. That shows strength, we’ve dropped points from winning positions several times this year.”

After being tipped for the title at the start of the season, Town have struggled to meet expectations after suffering a poor start to the campaign. Lacey revealed the behind-the scenes problems they have suffered.

He said: “We didn’t have good pre-season, bad weather cancelled a lot of friendly games. We started this year with injuries, suspensions and players on holiday. We’ve had a difficult start to be honest, that’s been the story of the season.”

Despite such a poor campaign in terms of league performance, a recent upturn in results has left Bewdley fans with real hope for next term.

Lacey echoed this view: “The story of our season is a poor start, that did not got better through the winter weather. But we made good signings and recently things have clicked into place, which gives us confidence for next season.”

Lacey has had to deal with management on his own for the last fortnight after joint manager Craig Payton’s recent absence and thanked his backroom staff for helping him out.

“I’ve got to say thank you to the backroom staff. Steve Godfrey and Darren Steadman in particular have been fantastic,” he added.

Town, who played Ludlow in the league last night, face another big week. After Saturday’s Wednesfield clash, they entertain Midland Alliance side Alvechurch in the Worcestershire Senior Urn next Thursday (7.45pm kick-off).