Bradford (Park Avenue) striker Chinedu Osadebe praised

The powerful forward twice put the visitors in front to crown a terrific performance, which also earned Johnson and Luca Havern their first point since taking over in the manager’s dugout on a temporary basis.

Speaking to the T&A ahead of today's home fixture with Warrington Rylands, Johnson spoke of his delight when discussing the forward’s impact in recent weeks.

He said: “I’m so pleased for Chin because he’s stepped up for us this season. I think his performances have got stronger as the season has gone on, and the goals he has scored have all been crucial. So, full credit to him because his attitude has been great even when he’s not been in the team.

“Together with our other forwards, Chin is working well, and we are starting to see some strong partnerships forming at the top end of the pitch, which is always positive. The link up between Will Longbottom and Chin for one of his two goal’s was brilliant and you can tell that a great understanding is starting to form between the pair of them.

“Will too, I’ve got to give him a lot of credit because he often gets played in different positions because he is so versatile. It can be tough for a player when they are chopping and changing between positions frequently, but Will has taken to the role well and is always a threat no matter what position he’s playing in.”

Despite being ahead on two occasions at Lancaster last Saturday, Johnson was content with taking a point home.

He said: “I think ultimately, we’re happy with a point because they had their chances and put us under a fair amount of pressure. Not only that, we were away from home, but it was vital that we got something from the game, and we were able to achieve that. It should give us some confidence going forward.”

Oli (Johnson) right with Luca Havern (Image: Martin Taylor)

Avenue will need every bit of confidence when they take on Rylands today, a side who are flying this season towards the summit of the Northern Premier League Premier Division in 2nd place.

Johnson has conceded that all the team will need to be at full throttle from the first whistle if they intend to get anything from this game.

He said: “There needs to be a level of consistency in our performances, which means that we need to play at the required standard for not just patches of a game, but for nearly the full 90 minutes and this Saturday will be no different because we are taking on a very strong team.

“There are no easy games in this league, we know that already, so it requires strong levels of detail and concentration in every performance at both ends of the pitch.

“Rylands play with a great deal of intensity, so it’s important that we match them or better them in this aspect of the game, and then we can use our quality to hurt them at the back. If we do that, then I believe we’re a good match for any side in the division.”