Hawks boss Doswell: We need 12 wins from 20 games to stand chance of making the National League South play-offs

Paul Doswell’s men reached the halfway point of their 40-game season last weekend with a 1-1 draw at lowly Billericay - their first match since January 2.

That left Hawks down in mid-table with 29 points. And Doswell knows a big improvement is needed in order to claim a top seven finish.

'We're at the halfway stage, we know what we need to do,’ he remarked ahead of Wednesday’s home game with Tonbridge Angels.

‘We probably need 12 wins out of the 20 to guarantee getting in (to the play-offs) and that's the target, really.

'That would get us 65 (points) and that would get you in the play-offs.'

Doswell has done his research well. Based on the average points of the seventh-placed team in the last 10 completed NLS seasons - 2009/10 to 2018/19 inclusive - Hawks will need 65 points this term.

In other words, they need 36 points from their second chunk of 20 fixtures - only Dorking (39), Maidstone (38) and Ebbsfleet (38) managed more in the first half of the 2021/22 season.

Only once in those 10 seasons have clubs played 40 games - every other campaign has seen 42 matches - and in 2014/15 Concord Rangers finished seventh with 65 points.

The highest points-per-game average from a club finishing seventh in those 10 completed seasons was Dover’s 1.761 (74 points, 42 games) in 2010/11.

Contrastly, Maidenhead finished seventh with an average of just 1.404 (59 points, 42 games) in 2015/16. Hawks are currently averaging 1.45 points per game.

Doswell knows a vastly improved Westleigh Park record is needed in the second half of the season - starting against Tonbridge.

Hawks have failed to win any of their last six home league games. They have only tasted two wins in nine attempts this season - 3-0 against Welling on the opening day and 5-2 against Concord on October 9.

‘At the end of the day, unless we improve our home form, our season won't be going anywhere,’ Doswell stated.

'We're well aware of it but it's got to that point where we've got to do something about it.

'We're now halfway through the season, we've still got 11 home games to play. That'll be the key to whether we get into the play-offs - that and having players available.’

Hawks have had miserable luck with injuries since October - a run which shows little sign of abating.

New defender Guy Hollis suffered an ankle injury on his debut at Billericay and misses the Tonbridge game.

Another centre half, Paul Rooney, remains doubtful with an ankle injury. If he does play, he will need to take painkillers beforehand.

Top scorer Jake McCarthy is sidelined with an ankle injury and Billy Clifford serves the second of a two-game suspension, awarded following his second red card of the season against Dorking on January 2. Pompey loanee Harry Jewitt-White stands by to make his home debut.

Hawks are aiming for their first double of the season after a James Roberts goal gave them victory at Tonbridge in November.

Angels are fourth bottom of the table but have beaten higher tier Torquay and Kings Lynn en route to the fifth round of the FA Trophy.

'They're in the middle of a very good run (Tonbridge), they've just got through to the last 16 of the Trophy, beating two National League teams to get there,’ Doswell remarked.

‘They beat Chippenham away last Tuesday (1-0) and they got a point at Hemel (Hempstead) - I've said all along Hemel are a decent side.

‘It doesn't matter if you're playing an Ebbsfleet or a Tonbridge, they're all equally difficult games.’