ARSENAL may be seven points clear at the top of the Premiership but I think what you will find is there is always a twist at the end whatever happens.

There's always some final twist. Football being football there will be one or two classics between now and then.

Unfortunately, and this is one of the areas we at York City are having problems with at the moment, the thing that really matters is consistency.

Yes, there will be a little blip in Chelsea, Manchester United and Arsenal's form but through the course of a season they will always be fairly consistent. It's possible they will have two or three games when they are a little bit off but they will still grind out the results and they will stick to it.

Just before the festive period, Hull had a really sticky patch in our division and they had a bad run but since then they went eight games unbeaten before losing at home to Torquay on Saturday.

They are sitting pretty at the top now in the promotion places. That's what you have to do. You have to go on a run like that and have to get that edge. It doesn't matter what league you are in.

In terms of us, I think unfortunately with the age factor and a little bit of immaturity comes the inconsistency. But as players grow and get used to it, you can start using it your advantage. You remember games and it almost becomes a bit robotic and you learn from your mistakes.

This is my 12th year as a professional and every year more information comes in and I'm sure it will be that way until the last ball I've kicked on this earth. I'm sure nothing will change.

The basics have to be there but you need to get into the team and see how things are done and that's why it is so important to have a steady team.

Lincoln City have been together for a long time and Mansfield have been together for a few years and you can really tell the difference.

Even Manchester United, although they have seen a lot of changes, have had the same nucleus of players for a long time.

That is something we can hopefully build on. In the last few weeks, we have been able to tie Darren Dunning down with a new contract and there are others who we can hopefully keep at the football club and start to build for the future.

Yes, there will always be new faces coming in from time to time, but a central core of players is what's needed to build up consistency.

Updated: 09:26 Thursday, February 26, 2004