AFC Sudbury boss Mark Morsley feels his side are showing ‘shoots of success’, even if results may not seemingly suggest so.

One win in 13 Bostik North games has seen Sudbury slip to 14th place in the table, with teams below them closing in and with games in hand.

With just one team being relegated – and Cheshunt and Romford battling for that place – Morsley has the luxury of testing and trying things out and getting his squad together for the seasons ahead.

Not that it will appease all Sudbury fans right now, who have forgotten what a win feels like for the first team at King’s Marsh.

On Saturday, Barking are the visitors to west Suffolk.

“The Barking game earlier in the season was my first Tuesday away league match,” Morsley said.

“A midweek game in East London was a bit of a cultural shock for the players I’d promoted from the Academy but with regards to Saturday’s challenge we have made strides since that previous encounter as I am starting to see some shoots of success in our play.

“What I want to see on Saturday is further improvements in our solidness as well as being more effective in the final third.”

That appears to be Morsley’s biggest problem at the moment with his young side, not just getting more goals but also getting them over the line to grab the three points.

“I had a good feeling before the match against Grays last weekend,” Morsley said.

“We had been cruelly denied a win at Brentwood the previous Tuesday when we had undertaken a near perfect away performance and also I’d been able to get Brightlingsea Regent striker Phil Kelly to buy into our football journey and join us on a two-year deal.

“However, Grays knew a bit too much in the day and as we didn’t benefit from our first half domination by taking those chances. We were undone by a collection of seasoned players.

“Barking will be tough but if we can join up the good parts of previous games I feel a positive performance and result is a real possibility.”

After Saturday’s clash, Sudbury face two tricky tests on the road, at Maldon & Tiptree on Tuesday night and away at Heybridge next weekend.