DENNY INGRAM has promised his Pickering Town side will not relent until the end of the season, with Evo-Stik League east division survival only part of the battle.

The Pikes have enjoyed a revival in form under Ingram's stewardship, with Saturday's 2-1 win at Belper Town earning them their seventh point in three games after collecting just eight in their previous 12 fixtures.

A win at Spalding United this Saturday (3pm) would put the Pikes nicely clear of the relegation zone with only a handful of games left to play.

But boss Ingram is looking further than just the end of this month - even if he cannot say for certain whether he and the club will remain in each others' thinking for next season.

He said: "It doesn't really change our position but it puts a bit of a gap between us and the bottom sides.

"There are still a few games to go and it's a huge game against Spalding on Saturday - massive. Win that and we go nine points clear of them.

"That's not mathematically safe but it would be a tough ask for anybody to overhaul that.

"Nothing's ever granted and until somebody tells me we're mathematically safe, our sole focus is on winning games to get the points needed to stay up.

"We don't want to get into the mindset of being safe. We're building for next year - this season hasn't been good enough and we don't want to be in this position again.

"We want players to have the right mindset if they want to be involved with the club next season. We have standards and expectations set for everyone, myself included."

On whether the team's recovery has made him a good candidate for the manager's job, he said: "It depends on what the club want and what I want.

"There are a lot of things to talk about and a lot of things that may not be right for both parties."

Irrespective of Ingram's future with the team, he certainly looks to have made his mark on the side. Since taking charge, he has brought in six signings who have had a positive impact at Mill Lane.

New boys Danny Earl and Stuart Mott linked up for the Pikes' first goal at Belper at the weekend, before Joe Danby's second-half finish secured the three points after Belper had equalised 31 minutes in.

"I'm over the moon," said Ingram. "The lads we have brought in have been exceptional. They've brought a freshness and made the others look over their shoulders. It's been refreshing.

"It was clearly not working (before) and things needed to change, whether ability-wise or mentality-wise.

"I haven't gone out and brought experience in, these are young, hungry lads who want to learn, listen and do what we want them to do, and they've bought into what we're asking of them."

Last Tuesday's game at Pontefract was abandoned 70 minutes because of floodlight failure with the Colls 2-0 up.