Aldershot Town 1, Harrogate Town 1

POSITIVE Aldershot Town boss Danny Searle is sticking by his guns that “someone will get a hiding” before the season is out.

The Shots manager reaffirmed the statement after watching his battling side earn a point against promotion chasing Harrogate Town at the EBB Stadium on Saturday.

Striker Mo Bettamer smacked in his tenth goal of the season a minute before half-time to cap a fine first half for Searle’s charges before the highflyers from North Yorkshire hit back to equalise through a belter from Lloyd Kerry to set up a grandstand finish.

And it was the lively Shots who came closest to grabbing all three points as Bettamer spurned two decent openings late on, much to the frustration of Searle and the vociferous home faithful.

“The biggest thing for me is that as the games are going on we are creating more and more chances and I’ve said for quite a long time this season, someone will get a hiding off us soon because it will all click and we’ll take those chances and put someone to bed properly,” said Searle.

“This team don’t get half the credit that they deserve.

“Our genuine supporters appreciate everything they are doing. Are we perfect? No. Do we need to improve? Yes. Do we need to strengthen? Yes. But we’re a very young side with some very talented players, and going into the last five or six minutes we looked like we could go on and win the game.

“People are entitled to their opinions but my opinion is that they are making good progress.”

Searle hopes that his resilient side can continue to progress when they make the long trip to the north-east on Saturday to face Hartlepool.

Seeking a first win in five games after three draws and a defeat, Aldershot will face a new threat at the Victoria Ground in the shape of Dave Challinor, who has added some stability since taking over the reins at Hartlepool in November.

And Searle hopes to put the record straight after Hartlepool comfortably brushed aside the Shots 3-0 at the EBB Stadium in October.

“They’ve got a real threat because they have got a lot of pace in their side. Dave Challinor has gone in and done a great job steadying the ship and picking up some points for them, so it won’t be an easy game. If you’re not at it 100 per cent in this league, anyone can turn anyone over.

“It’s going to be a tough place to go. I know we got beat 3-0 in the first game but we played pretty well against them but got done by three sucker punch goals.

“It shows that if you don’t take your chances, if you don’t finish off the opposition, they will punish you in return, so we need to go up there and put in a better performance in terms of goalscoring opportunities.”

Centre half Alex Finney will face a late fitness test after tweaking his groin during the 1-1 draw with Harrogate which could give Searle a defensive headache with loanee Max Hunt having already left the club to join League Two side Carlisle United.

But one big plus for Searle heading into the weekend is the improving fitness of winger Craig Tanner.

The 25-year-old joined the Shots in December having spent nearly two years on the sidelines after dislocating his kneecap and rupturing his patella tendon in a freak training ground injury at Fir Park.

Tanner has been eased into the club gently since making his debut in the 5-1 FA Trophy defeat at Torquay United and missed a couple of games before returning to the starting line up against Harrogate before being replaced by Alfy Whittingham on 73 minutes.

“He was disappointed when he came off, which is a great sign for me, it means he’s got more in his locker,” said Searle.

“Craig’s so deceiving when he plays because he looks like he’s not interested and then he picks the ball up and he’s gone.

“He’s quite elusive like that, and when you look at some of the top, top players who play his style of football, he’s got that kind of guile. He shows you the ball and then he takes it away from you, and when you have a player of that quality, you need him on the pitch, so we’ve got to make sure we manage him properly.”

Saturday’s game at Hartlepool kicks off at 3pm.