I WAS really pleased with the win and first-half performance in particular against Lincoln City on Tuesday night.

The three points have catapulted us up the table and suddenly the situation at the bottom of the table is looking a lot healthier.

Of course, I have always insisted what is happening below York City does not interest me and that I am only interested in catching the teams above.

But if Halifax do lose tomorrow night when they play Carlisle that would mean we are all but mathematically safe even before we take on Macclesfield on Saturday.

A win would certainly do that and while I don't want to be tempting fate, it will be nice to put any lingering worries to bed once and for all.

My real target remains getting as many points and finishing as high as possible, in particular getting more points than the 52 we managed last season when we finished 17th.

We have still got seven games to go and when you think last season we were not safe until the penultimate Saturday and the second last match of the campaign at Torquay, and yet we still managed to finish 17th, then there is still much to play for.

The season is far from over then - I cannot stress that enough - but it has already been a very different one in all aspects.

The off-field uncertainty has certainly played a significant part but the season has also certainly thrown up some unusual quirks in terms of statistics.

This season we have scored more goals away from home than at Bootham Crescent - up to last Saturday only two teams have scored more on their travels.

At the same time while we haven't scored as many goals at Bootham Crescent as I would have liked we have still conceded a lot less goals at home than on our travels. Again, there are not many teams who have conceded less goals at home than York City.

Furthermore, there have not been that many occasions this season when we have got something from games and we have had to admit later we were perhaps fortunate.

At the same however, there have been quite a few occasions when we have played well and got nothing when we have deserved at least something. Our recent games against now promoted Plymouth, Luton and Exeter spring to mind but there have been quite a few others.

Had we picked up just a handful of points from those games we could be sitting comfortably in mid-table and with games still in hand looking at a top-half finish. That is still the aim.

But no matter how good your team, you always need your fair share of luck too and if you have a settled team that is always a major help.

We have had so many injuries over such a long period of time it is almost as if people accept it now, but invariably we have had five or six people out every week which would be difficult for any squad to cope with.

Jeff Miller, our physio', has just completed an audit of our injuries and it was found this season we have had 11 hamstring and five calf injuries compared to just three hamstring and one calf strain last season.

They have all come when the players have been involved in games but only twice away from home.

Statistics show players pick up more injuries in away matches than at home. Why that is, I'm not sure.

But we have certainly bucked that trend and the Bootham Crescent pitch has no doubt had a big bearing.

We have tried everything to remedy the problems with the pitch in the short-term and this is in no way meant to be critical of the groundsman.

It has largely been the culmination of two bad winters of virtually non-stop rain.

But it has certainly proved a big problem for us.

With the dry weather of late, it has dried out and it is certainly not as bad as it was but we have to give credit to the players for the way they have kept going in less than ideal conditions.

Finally, I'd just like to finish my column this week by saying congratulations to the boys of St Peter's School in winning the Daily Mail Schools' Under-15 Rugby Union Cup at Twickenham at the weekend.

It is a great achievement.

Updated: 12:18 Thursday, March 28, 2002