PAUL Carden admits Warrington Town are on the back foot in the Evo-Stik Premier Division title race – but he insists his side will not be giving up.

Yellows trail leaders Farsley Celtic by four points with seven games of the season remaining, starting on Saturday when they welcome Gainsborough Trinity to Cantilever Park.

Farsley and fellow title contenders South Shields both recorded convincing wins on Saturday while Town could only manage a 1-1 draw at Stafford.

A further blow came on Sunday when the Northern Premier League confirmed North Ferriby United’s league record had been expunged after they went into liquidation.

The revised table saw both Yellows and Farsley lose six points having beaten the stricken Villagers twice, but South Shields only lost three as they were one of the two teams beaten by North Ferriby this season.

The Mariners have now moved above Town into second but Carden is adamant all is not lost.

“Make no bones about it, we are on the back foot,” he said.

“South Shields and Farsley had convincing wins, but there’s still 21 points to play for. It’s a lot of points.

“There’s a lot of opportunities for us to win points and the nature of our season has been after a defeat, we’ve drawn and then gone on a run of wins.

“I reminded the lads of that and told them to look at the patterns.

“We’ve stopped the rot with a point and now we’ve got to go on another run.”

Carden will once again be able to call upon Ben Garrity after a one-match ban kept him out of Saturday’s trip to Stafford.

Warrington Guardian:

Ben Garrity – here in action in the reverse fixture against Saturday's opponents Gainsborough – is available again after suspension. Picture by John Hopkins

He is expected to slot straight back into central midfield, with Shaun Beeley also pushing for a recall.

However, in the absence of both players, Russell Benjamin put in an assured display in midfield at Marston Road on what was his first league start for the club.

“I thought he was tremendous,” Carden said.

“He grew into the game, he found his energy and strength. That was his first start since Prescot Cables in the FA Trophy but he was outstanding.

“It was like he’d played every game of the season. He was strong in the tackle, passing, winning headers, having shots.

“Everything about him showed exactly what he’s got.”

Warrington Town vs Gainsborough Trinity kicks off at 3pm on Saturday