ACCRINGTON Stanley are set to be backed by a huge crowd at home to Whitby Town tomorrow as the season-long Unibond Premier Division leaders begin their inevitable Conference countdown.

Get along if you can - by the time Stanley play at home again they may well have already clinched the title and could be locking them out! By my reckoning, John Coleman's men need just 14 points from their final nine games. And if they avoid defeat at Vauxhall Motors next month, it could be as few as 12 points they require.

Currently, Vauxhall can haul in a maximum of 93 but Stanley's goal difference is so superior to anyone else's that it's worth a point alone. Barrow can net a maximum of 91 points after yet another week of favourable results for Stanley

After Saturday, Reds have three consecutive away games - Blyth Spartans a week on Tuesday, followed by the double-header weekend when they play at Droylsden on the Saturday and Whitby 24 hours later. If the faltering pack continue to slip up and Stanley maintain their form, it's likely that the Championship could be clinched on the road.

That would make for a triumphant homecoming on 12 April when Altrincham visit the Crown Ground but no-one at the club is yet counting any chickens.

See what chairman Eric Whalley and manager John Coleman think in Friday's Observer