HAYDOCK have drawn on extra motivation and inspiration this season after the passing of club stalwart and founder Eric Smith in June.

The call of ‘Team Eric’ has been a regular feature among the group – and so far they have done him proud, finishing on top of the North West Men’s League losing just three matches in the regular season.

They now go into the play-offs, two games to finish off the job, starting with a massive semi-final at home to Shevington on Saturday.

And it is another Smith, former Saints wing Chris, who has been charged with guiding the team, building a good balance that has produced the goods in a competitive league.

Now in his fourth year in charge former Grand Final winner Smith is seeing real results in building on the hard work of those that have put in during the proud club’s 37 year history.

Smith, aged 40, said: “We have had a call of ‘Team Eric’ and the lads always call 'Eric' before they go out.

“That is at the back of their minds, but at the end of the day they still have to go out there and play.

“We have decent team, quite a young one at that, but it has gone really well and I can’t be any more pleased.

“The lads’ attitudes towards game time has changed this year. We have matured a lot as a team from last year, because we have quite a young team.

“I have been there for four years and we have struggled keeping the age range right through – they play 14, 15 and 16 and then leave for other teams. It is a massive plus to us that we have kept such a young team together without them coming through.”

Again Smith nods towards the stalwarts who have grafted hard, steering the club through some rocky periods as well as the good times.

“A lot of the spirit came down to the work of Eric Smith and of course chairman Frank Bradshaw – they have worked so hard behind the scenes to keep the club together.

“On the field we have a few lads who have been making us tick. We have a good blend, with the experienced lads helping the younger ones.

“One of the older lads, Danny Gee, has been here 20 years since being a junior, then there is Andrew Bacon, Jordan Gibson, who could have gone to a pro team but turned it down because he likes playing in this environment, and then Dean Dollin has been here for years,” he said.

Those players, combined with some youngsters have helped deliver the winning formula so far, but the season hinges on the next two games.

And Smith, who is now assisted by former Haresfinch player Stuart Simmons, has tried to stop his side putting the cart before the horse as they enter the knockout phase.

“A lot of the lads were talking about the final already but we can’t get carried away because of the year we have had,” he said.

“I have had to lay the law down a bit.”

Although Haydock do not have the same club facilities as leading clubs in the borough like National Conference sides Pilkington Recs, Blackbrook and Thatto Heath, they are happy that their tight-knit club continues to punch well above its weight – quite literally when it came to organising a boxing fundraiser last Christmas that pulled in more than £6,000 for club funds.

They remain ambitious, but that does not mean that they will be eager to jump out of the North West Men’s League and swap away fixtures at Widnes, Wigan and parts of St Helens with long haul journeys.

“The furthest we go in this division is Heysham and we can be back home for 7pm, in the Conference every other week you can be up in Cumbria, over on Humberside, in Yorkshire.

“It is a massive commitment, particularly if you have a young family, and a lot of the lads probably think the same.

“That said, we remain ambitious as a club.

“The committee has been quite old in the past, it is younger now with a few ex-players on there.

“They are trying to push us forward,” Smith said.

Haydock’s play off semi final at home to Shevington Sharks on Saturday kicks off at 2.30pm.

The other semi sees Thatto Heath A entertain Heysham Atoms on the same day.