Barry Town’s Callum Sainty has expressed the club’s desire to bridge the gap with the Cymru Premier’s top sides.
Since their promotion as champions back to Wales’ top flight in 2017, the Linnets have secured seventh, third, fourth and fifth place finishes.
Last year ended in disappointment for Gavin Chesterfield’s side, who finished 17 points behind the top three, losing in the play-off semi-final to Caernarfon Town.
However, midfielder Sainty has highlighted the squad’s determination to get Barry challenging with the league’s big-hitters.
“We’ve got to bridge that gap. Last year, we finished quite a way behind Bala in third, a few points behind Penybont in fourth.
“That’s a bad season for us, we need to pushing the top three. We need to be closer to them.
“I think we have the players to do that and results like the weekend prove that we can try and mix it with them this season.
“A club like Barry have got to aim for those sort of things. If you haven’t got high goals, I don’t see the point in playing.
“The way we have to look at it, especially after this weekend, is that we could be one of those teams at the top.
“We’ve just got to get back in the right direction. Last year, I think we took a few steps backwards, but we’ve got to get back on track.”
In the play-off semi-final last year, Barry Town succumbed to a 3-1 loss at the hands of Caernarfon Town.
Mike Hayes’ brace, along with loanee Jake Bickerstaff’s late strike took the Cofis to the final, ending the Linnets’ run of two straight European qualifications.
Sainty expressed that the loss was tough to take but feels that the disappointment can be turned into motivation for this campaign.
“It was so disappointing last season. We were gutted with how the season finished. We couldn’t wait to get back in to put that right.
“It definitely gives us an added determination. This club needs to be in Europe. It’s one of the biggest clubs in the league and in Wales.
“We need to be pushing at the higher end of the table and qualifying for Europe, so our aim is to do a lot better than last season and be closer to those above us.”
Chesterfield’s men began the campaign with a 2-1 defeat at Aberystwyth Town, with Mathew Jones scoring a last-minute free-kick.
Since then, the Linnets have bounced back and are in fine form, recording ten points from a possible 12, along with defeating Goytre AFC in the Welsh Cup.
Barry secured an impressive scalp last time out with a 1-0 win over back-to-back Cymru Premier champions Connah’s Quay Nomads.
After Callum Morris was denied from the penalty spot, Rhys Kavanagh netted with a shrewd finish from inside the box.
As the Nomads tried to get level in the second period, John Disney was sent off at Jenner Park for a second consecutive season.
Sainty hailed the Linnets’ performance and feels that the hosts deserved the three points.
“I thought it was a good performance. We started a bit slow and gave the penalty away, but Mike Lewis has made a great save and after that, we grew into the game. I think that spurred us on.
“It’s sometimes difficult when teams go down to ten men when you’re winning. You’re not sure whether to stick or twist.
“They had a few chances, probably could have scored one or two, but overall, we deserved to win that game. The penalty miss gave us confidence for the rest of the game.”
The victory over the Nomads takes Barry to ten points, three behind leaders The New Saints.
As the Linnets rise to third in the table after the opening five games, Sainty feels that he and his teammates can take huge confidence from defeating the champions.
“I think results like that cement our belief. It gives us massive confidence. We knew what we were going to get when we came up against them.
“It’s always a tough game, they’re a physical side, they stick to what they know and it obviously does very well for them. They’ve won the league back-to-back, so it’s a massive result for us.
“On our day, we know we’re capable of beating most teams in the league. Last season especially, we didn’t quite get anything going for long periods and we didn’t quite get momentum.
“We’ve beaten Connah’s Quay now but it’s still very early days. We’ve got another very big test now this weekend. We’re definitely confident of beating the bigger teams, we just need to have a bit more momentum going into those sort of games.”
After their win over Connah’s Quay Nomads, the fixtures don’t get any easier for the Linnets.
Chesterfield’s men now face the difficult challenge of travelling to face The New Saints at Park Hall.
The Saints have recorded 13 points from their opening five games, maintaining their unbeaten start with a late equaliser at Penybont thanks to Declan McManus.
While Sainty expressed that the Linnets are full of confidence, the midfielder acknowleged the challenge ahead.
“When you go away to TNS, you know what to expect. I haven’t had many good days up there!
“They’re going to have a lot of the ball, create a lot of chances, but you have to try and keep them to a minimum, slow them down as much as you can and that’s your best bet.
“Hopefully, we can implement our own game and get a result up there, but as we’ve seen over the years, they’re phenomenal at home.
“With their performance in Europe this season, they were very unlucky not to go further, so it’s a very tough task for us.
“Our momentum is going to be a big thing for us. We’re on a good run at the moment.
“Beating Connah’s Quay is only going to help us keep the confidence high. Going into big games like TNS away when you’ve just beaten the back-to-back champions gives you that bit of confidence that we can get a result.”
In the fixtures between the two sides last season, The New Saints secured four victories, with an aggregate score of 14-1.
However, the Linnets tasted victory over the Saints in the previous season, with Evan Press netting the winner at Park Hall in a 1-0 win.
Sainty insisted that causing an upset and ending Anthony Limbrick’s side’s unbeaten start would be a massive statement.
“It’s early days, but if we did beat TNS, people would open their eyes a bit.
“At the start of the season, we were unfairly written off after last season’s performance. I think that’s been a catalyst for us so far this year.
“We’ve got a good bunch who have known each other for a long time and we’re really chomping at the bit this season. Hopefully, people are starting to see that now.”
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