Preston North End right back Darnell Fisher is well aware of the importance of the shorter month of February to the season.
The second month of 2020 sees the Lilywhites facing seven games, after which only ten games will remain of the season, and the end will be in sight.
And going into the month’s first game – at home to Swansea City – this Saturday, the Reading-born man is pleased that the side have a bit of momentum after last Tuesday’s win at Barnsley.
“The game against Barnsley was good to get three points,” he told iFollow PNE. “It wasn’t a nice night or a nice game, but it was a hard-fought win and now we are looking forward to facing Swansea on Saturday.
“It was one of those wins that the closer you get to May, they start being vital – no matter how you play, it is about getting the result as a team and take it from there.
“It was a good team performance. We started well and got the three-goal lead and then we saw the game out.”
It was also the team’s first clean sheet of the decade, something the defender was pleased with: “We like to get clean sheets and we haven’t had too many this season – that’s only the fourth I have played in – so it was good to get it,” he continued.
“As a defender, you like to defend and we don’t mind getting our backs against the wall and keeping the opposition out, we have a strong defensive unit.
“The centre backs’ jobs are to defend and the full backs have to do a bit of both, defending and getting forward and setting up goals, but we need to keep it tight at the back as a team.”
The game against Steve Cooper’s Swans will be a tough one, with them also chasing a top six finish, but the No.2 is focused and ready for the challenge.
“They will be a tough game. When we played then last time, they had some good players – some really good players!
“Their philosophy has always been the same for years, so we know what they are about and the game they will want to play, but we will fancy ourselves against most teams to compete.
“Teams come and have a game plan and Swansea might do the same and it is up to us to try and combat that and get the better of them.
“They have brought in some new players. [Conor] Gallagher did well for Charlton in the first half of the season – he is a good player and I am sure he will do well for them.
“We are starting to get players back ourselves and once we have the whole group back together, we are a strong team, with more than two players in each position and we will all be competing.
“Most months are important in this league, but with seven games in February, it can really start to pan out how your season will go and so we are looking forward to it and we will deal with each game as it comes,” he added.