Football Echo: Moore & Co North West Counties: Henerty: Squirrels will turn corner.

Byline: DAVID BASSETT

PETER HENERTY was in defiant mood as he reflected on the recent disastrous run of results which has left Formby languishing in the bottom two in the First Division table.

The Squirrels have lost their last eight games and have collected just two points from a possible 39 since their only win of the season at the end of August.

And this afternoon they face the daunting prospect of a home clash with third-placed St Helens Town, who have lost only once in their last 13 games.

But Henerty, who shares the managerial duties at Altcar Road with Mike Scott, insists there is light at the end of the tunnel for a Formby side which has been beset by a host of injury problems all season.

``The easy thing would be to pack it in, but we are not defeatist, '' said Henerty, who has been with Formby for 23 years, first as a player and later as manager, taking charge in 1987 and joining forces with Scott in 1994.

``We are going through a bad time at the moment, but it's a combination of a lack of confidence and horrendous injury problems, and I am convinced we can turn the corner.

``It is going to be hard over the next couple of weeks because we have got some tough games coming up against the likes of St Helens and Fleetwood. ''

Henerty insisted: ``People have got to realise that we have gone up a division and it is a far better standard.

``Last season in the Second Division you could look at the fixtures and know where your points were going to come from, with no disrespect to those teams. But every team in this division, wherever they are in the table, will give you a hard game. ''

But Henerty pointed out: ``At the beginning of the season, we played four or five of the top teams and got points off them, and we weren't far off it.

``If we can got a lot of the injured lads back, I still think we will hold our own and pick ourselves up.

``Obviously, we are finding it hard with players missing. But once we get that break and a little bit of the rub of the green I am sure we will pick it back up again.

``There are still 20-odd games left and two or three wins could push us back up there. ''

Henerty said the club had been stunned by the extent of the injury problems. ``They have been horrendous, '' he said.

``Last Saturday we had our sixth goalkeeper of the season. Six goalkeepers in 15 games tells you a story, and that is all down to injuries and not the keepers' performances.

``Andy Olsen went over on his ankle in training recently and he is on crutches for two weeks, and the other Saturday there were three players hobbling around on crutches watching games.

``There has got to be light at the end of the tunnel. ''

n SKELMERSDALE United are at home to Stone Dominoes today, while in the Second Division, promotion chasers Cammell Laird are at Holker Old Boys and Ashton Town visit Blackpool Mechan-ics.