CRAWLEY were ecstatic after their win on Monday night because it effectively clinched the championship for them.

It was an absorbing game that was always going to be nip and tuck.

Francis Vines didn't think there was anything in the game and was over the moon at the win. That's a back-handed compliment in that obviously they regarded this fixture as a real tough one, which I believe it was.

I've had the advantage of having a look at a video of the match and on reflection we probably had more chances then they did.

But in a game like this, when opportunities are at a premium, you've got to be good enough to take them and get your noses in front.

Overall we didn't have quite enough possession or quality possession to open them up sufficiently which we have been doing to teams in previous games.

Switching the full backs also upset the balance a little bit. We've been strong down the right with Allan Davies and Pat Lyons but with Shabir Khan and Paul Carty injured we didn't have much option to do otherwise than move Allan to left back.

Jon Holloway came in and did a sound job on the right but really he shouldn't be playing again this early after his groin treatment but we had to throw him in.

The narrowness of the defeat illustrated that we have bridged the gap since we played Crawley and lost 4-0 at the end of August.

However it's no coincidence that the only two sides we've lost to in the last 13 league games have been Crawley and Weymouth -- the top sides in the league. They are the benchmark and, though we are getting closer, we are still not quite in the same league as them.

Undoubtedly though, we have made progress.

Now we have to ensure that there is no hangover, so to speak, from the disappointment of losing to Crawley. The players were a little down but we gave a decent account of ourselves against what I consider a very good team. There was no disgrace in losing to them.

But, as ever, it's now about the next game which takes us to Dorchester on Saturday. They are struggling at the wrong end of the Dr Martens Premier Division.

As we have said so often this season, league position will count for little unless we focus on the match and give it our full attention.

At Havant & Waterlooville we demonstrated what we can do when we are at our best and what better way to erase the Crawley defeat than by a win.

It's also a critical stage of the season for us because our last two campaign finishes have been terrible to say the least.

Having come so far since New Year it's vital we don't have a repeat, not least because it will tarnish the summer break knowing we could have done better. I believe we can take runners-up spot and that's the target I've set. It's achievable but we must maintain our concentration.

Finally Adam Wilde was the subject of a transfer bid by Weymouth last week. I have to say it's flattering to have championship contenders chasing your players. It shows the players we've brought in are the right ones for the club. If the current squad was all put on the transfer list tomorrow I'd have clubs queuing round the block eager to snap them up.

But we are not in the habit of selling our best players and there was absolutely no chance of Adam leaving.