Away form could make or break the Magpies - Chorley boss targets big improvement on the road
Chorley boss Andy Preece knows his men must improve their away form if they are to have any designs on finishing in the play-off positions this season.
The Magpies boast one of the best home records in the National League North, having picked up seven wins and suffered only two defeats from their first 12 games at Victory Park.
Only two other teams can better their points per game ratio in front of their own fans in the first-half of the campaign.
However, by contrast, their fortunes away from home paint a completely different picture.
They have secured just nine points on the road out of a possible 36 – their record of just two wins and three draws is the fifth worst in the division.
Considering they are only three points off the play-off places currently, Preece is all too aware where his team would be now in the table if they had picked up more points on their travels.
This weekend offers the Magpies the chance to reverse those fortunes when they make the trip to the Deva Stadium to face Chester – the team directly below them in the table.
"Our home record is probably the best or very close to being the best in the league,” said Preece.
"If we could add our away form to that then we would be certainties to be in the play-offs and better.
"That’s the thing which has let us down, although performances have not been too bad. We just haven’t been able to see-off games and get a result.
"Even if we had turned three of those away defeats into draws which we could easily have done, we would be in the play-offs now.
"It’s something which we have tried to address. We know that it could be the difference between getting in the play-offs or not.”