City netball coach Sue Gullick has warned her table-topping players that they must win their remaining games to guarantee a play-off place.

Plymouth Pilgrims edged to a 37-34 Regional One victory at Gloucester-based side Hucclecote to stay on course for the promotion play-offs to the national leagues.

A single Regional One team is allotted a play-off spot - and Pilgrims have three matches to seal their place, beginning with a clash with the dangerous Galmington at Marjons tomorrow (11.30am).

 

Gullick, whose side has posted an impressive 9-3 record, is refusing to look any further than the next match.

But she said: "What it boils down to is that to absolutely guarantee getting into the play-offs, we have to win all our remaining matches.

"Having said that, we all decided after beating Hucclecote that we needed to focus on our next game and not look any further.

"It's no good looking further down the line at what might happen - we've got to focus on what comes next.

"The good thing is that we have got two or three good results lately and that has built quite a bit of confidence among the players.

"But we have got to take it one result at a time."

The Plymouth team took on Hucclecote with just eight players after suffering a rash of unavailabilities.

Their playing style was not helped by a indoor court which had to be swept clear of mud after teams taking part in a rugby event trooped across it.

Gullick said: "The surface was really slippery and it hindered our midfield play - Kerry MacArthur had a lot of trouble keeping her feet.

"But we got the result we needed in the end, even if the match was a bit of a nail-biter."

Gullick can pick from a full squad this weekend and were concentrating on starving Galmington's highly-rated attack of the ball in training this week.

Pilgrims were ejected from the national league when netball in the UK was reorganised two years ago.

They finished third last season - but Gullick said that even second might be enough this season to join the post-season promotion party.

She said: "I've told the players that we need to finish at least second this season.

"It may be that the team who potentially may finish above us might not want to get promoted and elect to stay down.

"That means the next-placed team, hopefully us, would get a chance at the play-offs."