Leiston manager, Glenn Driver, insists that his side need to take six points out of six, from their next two home games against Leatherhead (tomorrow) and Harrow Borough (on Tuesday), if they are to stay in the Ryman Premier play-off race.

Although Leiston remain third in the table, with five games left, Driver has been dismayed with his side’s recent displays, which have culminated in three away defeats in an eight-day period at Bognor Regis, Billericay and Merstham.

“It’s all about demanding off people,” insisted Driver.

“No matter what system of football you are playing, if you haven’t got winners and you haven’t got leaders, then you are not going to win football matches, and we haven’t got enough of those at the moment.

“You could say that we’ve had a tough spell, with the three away games, but everything is hard in this league – the next five games are going to be hard.

“I can’t do anymore. I pick a side that I feel can go out and win a game of football, and we had more than enough out there (2-1 defeat at Merstham on Tuesday) to win, but they were better than us.

“You go in the dressing room at the end and they look at you like you’re talking in a foreign language! It’s frustrating. We fell away badly last year, and we’re falling away badly again this year.

“Characters, leaders – have we got enough of them? No way, we haven’t, so come next season I guarantee we will have.

“We have five games left and we are still in third, but I’m not getting carried away. If we get in the play-offs it’s an added bonus.

“We are still alive, but I just don’t know where the next win is coming from! If we don’t buck up our ideas, against Leatherhead and Harrow Borough, and if we don’t get six points out of those two games, then I think we fall away badly,” added Driver

It is very tight at the top end of the Ryman Premier table, at least behind the top two of Bognor Regis and Havant & Waterlooville, who are fighting it out for the one automatic promotion slot.

Leiston, Dulwich Hamlet, Tonbridge Angels and Needham Market are all on 68 points, while seventh-placed Enfield, eighth-placed Billericay and Wingate & Finchley, in ninth, are all sitting on 66 points. That means just two points cover seven teams, chasing the last three play-off berths.