HAVING suffered a Fylde blitz for the best part of 20 minutes, Otley’s head coach Charlie Maunder was pleased with how his side responded in their National League Two North opener last weekend.

The Lancastrian hosts scored 24 points in 18 minutes, and Maunder confessed: “We have had a good pre-season but maybe weren’t as sharp as we could have been, though everything that Fylde tried came off in those early stages.

“However, for the remainder of the game we kept knocking on the door and could not quite open it by not executing in the corner etc, and they had a 24-point lead to defend.

“Perhaps we should have got a losing bonus point or even won.

“Fylde are at Preston Grasshoppers this weekend, and I would hate to have to play them on a 4G pitch.

“It depends how dry the winter is as to how Fylde will do, but I reckon top four.”

Otley did score the other 14 points, and Maunder added: “Maybe our game management needs to be a bit better but once we slowed the game down we did well.

“We need to stay in touch more because it is easier for us to defend when we are seven points or even 10 points down.”

Otley face a different challenge on Saturday, hosting Huddersfield (2.30).

“It is a derby and it should be entertaining,” said Maunder, who could well have former Huddersfield players Adam Malthouse (lock) and Laurence Sanderson (tight-head prop) available.

“Both of them are champing at the bit to be involved,” admitted Maunder.