JANUARY will be make or break time for Ilminster’s season according to manager Darren Manley.

The Blues find themselves second from bottom of the Errea County league’s premier division following six straight defeats.

And Manley has set a target of 15 points from their next eight matches if his side are to have a realistic chance of staying out of the bottom three come the end of the season.

Manley said: “Our next few games are slightly easier than our run in so we need to grab our chance and close the gap on the teams above.”

At the moment Ilminster are eight points clear of safety with just three wins from 15 matches.

But Manley is still confident his side can stay up.

He said: “We’ve got the talent, without a doubt, but confidence is obviously very low at the moment.

“When we train on a Wednesday night we play some fantastic football and we just need to relax and do the same on a Saturday.

“The quality is definitely there, although the squad is a little thin so I’m talking to two or three players to see if I can get more back-up.”

Last Saturday's scheduled home match with Cutters Friday was rained off.

However Manley is confident that Saturday’s match at home to Watchet (2pm) will go ahead.