BRANTHAM Athletic joint-boss Matt Carmichael says he and his players will relish the challenge of a pivotal week in their season.

The Imps visit Thurlow Nunn League high-fliers Stowmarket Town tomorrow - a crunch match in terms of their aspirations of a top-four finish - before a League Cup semi-final at Wroxham on Tuesday.

It could be a defining few days and Carmichael says his team are in buoyant mood after a positive performance in Saturday’s 0-0 draw against Wroxham at the Leisure Centre.

“We’ll go into the games full of confidence, off the back of a decent performance against Wroxham,” he said.

“I’m sure they would hold their hands up and admit we were the better side.

“We deserved to win and the only thing missing was a goal. Hopefully now we can build on it at Stowmarket.

“We know it’ll be a tough game. The top three are in those positions for a reason and they’ve set the benchmark this season.

“But we’ve managed to stay in the mix and if we could get something tomorrow it would show we’re on the right track.

“We’ve overachieved but it’s not down to luck. It’s been down to sheer hard work, from the groundsman to the chairman with us - the management and players - in between.

“We might not quite have the squad to match the top sides and it really hurts us when key players are missing but we’re living with them and that really pleases me.”

Brantham are fifth in the premier division - four points behind Stowmarket and five behind Histon.

Joint-boss Michael Brothers returns after serving a suspension while Craig Hughes, plagued by a hamstring injury, made his comeback against Wroxham.

After tomorrow, attention will switch to the Tuesday’s cup semi-final at Trafford Park.

“It’s another huge game and getting to the final would be a fair reflection and reward for our efforts this season,” added Carmichael.

George Sykes was the hat-trick hero as Brantham's reserves thumped Harwich and Parkeston 5-0 in the Essex and Suffolk Border League premier division on Wednesday.