Luke Goddard is looking for his Whitchurch Alport side to maintain their unbeaten start to the season as they go into two really tough looking games on paper.

Alport were in action last night as they contested the Shropshire Senior Cup final for the first time in their 73-year history.

Shrewsbury Town provided the opposition but Goddard feels that back-to-back games against Bootle on Friday and 1874 Northwich next Monday will be much sterner tests for the early-season pace-setters.

“Five wins from our first six matches is obviously a better points return than we might have expected,” he said.

“We’ve already played Northwich Vics who were fancied to do well in this league and came away with a 1-0 win, so I don’t think we have anything to fear.

“Are we in a false position? Time will tell I suppose. We will lose games along the way and it’s then that I’ll find out if we are to be taken seriously as promotion candidates.

“Then you can learn something because your character will be tested, and it’s in times of adversity when our scrutiny intensifies.”

The Bootle game has been brought forward to Friday night with an 8pm kick-off time as Alport will be looking to keep their 100 per cent winning record away from home.

But Alport are likely to be tested against a side that came so close to winning the Premier Division title last season.

Leading the table going into the final game, the Merseysiders needed one more win to secure the crown but Northwich Victoria spoiled the party by earning a 1-1 draw, handing the title to City of Liverpool who grabbed the one promotion place up for grabs.

Goddard though, thrives on pitting his wits against the better sides.

He added: “Some of our better performances this season have come against teams where we weren’t expected to win.

“Coleshill away in the FA Cup is a perfect example of that; they were a step four side and yet we dominated them for 90 minutes on their own pitch.

“Anyone who came along to the Leek Town cup tie would say we went mightily close to earning a replay so I don’t think – and this is the greatest of respect to both Bootle and 74 – we have anything to fear.

“You want games like this as a measure of how far we’ve come even since we began our Premier Division journey a little over 12 months ago.

“If we can maintain our strong start to the season then great. But we are going to suffer defeats along the way and I believe we have the mental strength to go again.

“If we lose on Friday or Monday I would expect us to start another mini-run to keep Alport among the frontrunners.

“Looking back to the Leek defeat we bounced back in the next two matches, winning both and scoring four goals in each with just one goal conceded.

“We’ll just keep doing what we’ve been doing that’s given us this great start and the longer we can keep momentum high then confidence will ooze through the side.”

The 1874 Northwich clash at Yockings Park on Monday night is kindly sponsored by the Old Eagles.

The match gets underway at 7.45pm and turnstiles open at 6.30pm.

Alport sat out this weekend ahead of their Shropshire Cup Senior Final as Rylands went three points clear, albeit now leaving the Reds with a game in hand.