Keeping faith has paid off says Chorley boss Jamie Vermiglio

Chorley’s excellent results in recent weeks has made boss Jamie Vermiglio feel a certain amount of vindication.
Loan striker Charles Vernam has been recalled by Grimsby Town (photo: Stefan Willoughby)Loan striker Charles Vernam has been recalled by Grimsby Town (photo: Stefan Willoughby)
Loan striker Charles Vernam has been recalled by Grimsby Town (photo: Stefan Willoughby)

The Magpies manager has always retained his belief this season that his men are good enough to survive in the National League.

That strong view might have been hard to believe after the opening few months of the season with his men struggling at the bottom of the table.

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After winning just one of their opening 20 league games, the Magpies found themselves rock bottom – a whopping eight points from safety.

However, three wins and a draw over the past three weeks means they are now just a win away from moving out of the drop zone.

While Vermiglio is not getting too carried away, he admits 10 points out of a possible 12 has given his men a platform to build on.

“It’s been all right me saying over the last few months that we are not far off – that we are there or thereabouts and quite close in games.

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“I genuinely felt that in a lot of the games, even though we might have been on the wrong end of things, we have done well.

“We were not coming up against teams and thinking, ‘We are well out of our depth’.

“Once or twice we have come against somebody and had to hold our hand up and say they were much better than us. But just hearing that little bit of talk, not just from me but the players and fans also, has seen that talk turn into action and we have started to see some points pop up on the board.

“It has helped to rejuvenate people because there is only so long you can keep saying, ‘We are good enough’.

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“You need to put the points on the board, we have done that over the last few games but it’s only the start.

“We are still in the relegation zone – it’s still backs-to-the-wall and a difficult task but we have definitely given ourselves a fighting chance.”

This weekend Chorley travel to Edgeley Park to take on familiar foes Stockport County.

The two teams were promoted together last season from National League North and the Hatters were beaten by the Magpies 3-0 at Victory Park earlier in the season.

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“Recent history counts for nothing, but we have had some decent results against them in the last few years,” said 
Vermiglio.

“Especially going to their place, we have always managed to conjure up a performance. Stockport’s form has been intermittent, but they have won a lot of games and lost a lot.”

Vermiglio revealed loan striker Charles Vernam has been recalled by parent club Grimsby Town.

Squad-wise, the manager revealed there are no fresh injury worries although a few of his players have been affected by illness this week but he is hopeful they will available this weekend.