MANAGER Paul Marshall has admitted Pickering Town are in a relegation battle ahead of tomorrow's "must-win" game - but believes they have enough spirit to survive.

Pickering are 15th in the Evo-Stik League east division, two points above the relegation zone, and visit bottom side Gresley (3pm) off the back of last weekend's 3-1 defeat at play-off hopefuls Sheffield FC.

And the Pikes will go to Derbyshire without Hull City Academy keeper Charlie Andrew, whose impressive one-and-a-half years at Mill Lane has earned him a loan move to National League North promotion hopefuls Bradford Park Avenue.

Marshall said: "Gresley is a must-win game. They're struggling and they've just got a new manager who lost his first game 5-0, so they're going to look to turn that around very quickly.

"It's a huge game for us because it will go a long way to securing safety.

"We're in a relegation battle - we have had two wins from seven. Everybody knows it's a relegation battle and not mid-table safety we're in.

"We've got to take the points from our games in hand. That's the only thing we have in our favour. And we've got to win those to stay in the league we worked so hard to get into.

"All the players have got a lot of spirit in them. We've had a couple of poor results but generally, for our first season at this level, we're competing well against bigger clubs with bigger budgets.

"I'm sure we'll stay up."

Since joining on work experience in 2017, 19-year-old Andrew steadily became Pickering's first-choice keeper and made 63 appearances for the Pikes, keeping 16 clean sheets.

Hull, however, have been impressed with the experience Pickering gave Andrew and will entrust the Mill Lane outfit with developing 18-year-old second-year scholar Harrison Foulkes, will go straight into contention for Saturday after joining on a youth loan deal.

"It's a big blow," Marshall said of Andrew's departure. "Charlie has been outstanding for us.

"With Bradford Park Avenue taking him on loan at Conference North level, hopefully he'll end up being a professional goalkeeper.

"I trust Steve (Croudson, Hull Academy goalkeeping coach). He knows the standard, what we're about and he can't speak highly enough of the way me and Denny (Ingram, Pickering assistant manager) looked after him."

East division play-off hopefuls Tadcaster Albion will want to build on last week's 2-1 win over Belper Town - their first three points of the year. Tomorrow, the Brewers host Wisbech Town.

Fifth-placed in the premier division, Scarborough Athletic travel to Marine tomorrow.

In Northern Counties East League division one, seventh-placed Selby Town seek their first win in six as they go to Rossington Main.

Harrogate Railway Athletic - newly out of the premier division relegation zone - visit Garforth Town while Knaresborough Town travel to Yorkshire Amateur.

Harrogate Town welcome Stockport County in the FA Trophy third round, with a place in the quarter-finals at stake.