ALEX Whittle will return to York City tomorrow just two months after leaving Bootham Crescent for League Two Forest Green Rovers.

The Liverpool-born left-back, who turned 25 yesterday, has joined another one of his former clubs Southport on loan until the end of the season and is hoping to feature for tomorrow’s visitors to North Yorkshire, having only managed one EFL Trophy start and a couple of substitute league appearances since moving to the New Lawn in January.

If Whittle is involved, he will be hoping to help the Sandgrounders rack up their longest consecutive run of victories in more than a decade.

Kevin Davies’ men have already equalled their best sequence since December 2007, having won their last five matches, scoring three goals in each fixture and conceding just once during that period of time.

Telford (3-0), Tamworth (3-0) and Curzon Ashton (3-1) have all been seen off at Haig Avenue, following triumphs at North Ferriby (3-0) and Gainsborough (3-0).

The winning form has seen the Merseysiders move to within one point and position of the play-off zone, although seventh-placed Spennymoor have played six fewer games.

Southport are, though, only six points behind fourth-placed City with a game in hand.

But there is some context to the five-game, 100 per cent record with all the victories against teams, who are in the National League North’s bottom six and the coastal club are yet to defeat any side currently in the top seven this term, although, in 2018, they have now won eight of their ten matches.

Even though, the former Football League outfit’s goals-conceded record of 55 is also the highest of the division’s top-14 clubs, improvements have been made in that respect too, with another ex-Minsterman Jon Worsnop having kept seven clean sheets in his last 11 appearances.

At the other end of the pitch, ex-Accrington attacker Jason Gilchrist is the top scorer on 14 goals.

The 23-year-old has grabbed eight in as many matches, but could not hit the target for a fifth consecutive game during Tuesday night’s triumph over Telford.

Davies will continue to be without the sidelined Iain Turner (hip), Curtis Jones (back), John-Paul Kissock (migraines), Liam Martin (cruciate ligament damage), David Morgan (hamstring) and Josh Hine (ankle ligament damage).