FRUSTRATED Aldershot Town boss Gary Waddock has admitted that his players are playing for their futures.

The admission comes as the struggling Shots are in the middle of an enforced two-week match lay off and a desperate 13-match winless run stretching back to November 3.

And by the time Aldershot face Chesterfield at the EBB Stadium on January 19, the Shots could be in the bottom three of the National League depending on the result of the clash between fellow strugglers Maidstone United and Maidenhead United who play four days earlier.

A win for Maidstone would leave the Shots in dire straits with only Chesterfield and Braintree Town below them before the must-win six-pointer against the Spireites.

“We have to be in a relegation fight,” said Waddock, who is in his second spell as Aldershot boss. “We are where we are in the table and we’ve got a real battle on our hands.

“The players are playing for their futures, they’ve got their careers at stake. But they are also playing for pride.”

Barnet’s involvement in the third round of the FA Cup put paid to last Saturday’s scheduled Vanarama National League clash while this Saturday is taken up by the FA Trophy, with Aldershot having made a somewhat bizarre, if not unsurprising, exit against Bedford Town 7-0 in the previous round having fielded an academy side.

Yet the enforced layoff could end up having a beneficial effect, as Waddock’s side have been hit by a repeated and lengthy injury crisis this season, the likes of which the 56-year-old manager has never seen before.

“We’re not playing for two weeks but we are still working, and we’ll organise some friendly games to keep us ticking over and hopefully get some minutes into the legs of some of the players who haven’t had much game time. It may also give some of our injured lads time to recover with a bit of luck.

“It’s frustrating, I’ve never known a situation like it.”

The Chesterfield game on January 19 has now taken on huge significance in light of Aldershot’s desperate run, yet there have been bright spots in the gloom, with the Shots earning plaudits with brave goalless draws against high-flying Leyton Orient and Wrexham in the National League and taking League One side Bradford City to a reply in the FA Cup before cruelly bowing out on penalties.

“It’s (the National League) a tough league and there are plenty of teams in there with a good Football League history. There are also clubs with healthy budgets, and some who have come into the league with healthy budgets.

“They are all huge games now and we will have to continue working as hard as we are now. But I’ve always said that it doesn’t matter where you are now, it’s where you finish that counts.”

nIrish forward Gerry McDonagh has signed until the end of the season on a free transfer from League One Barnsley.