Guiseley were tipped to struggle at the start of the season as they were a rather limited newly-promoted side that had squeezed through via the play-offs and did not seem ready to take on the new challenges. But Mark Bower had belief in his squad and made some decent additions to the squad in Tom Craddock and Rob Atkinson. The Yorkshire outfit were based upon on physical play in midfield and defence and quick counterattacks to catch opponents one. It was a generally satisfying start of the season from the Lions as they were having the odd off-day and a heavy loss but were playing with drive and spirit and getting some decent results. Indeed, the only two losses in a run of 12 games from August to October were back-to-back reversals at the hands of Gateshead and Aldershot. The main aim was to be hard to beat and defined with numbers, while relying on the odd piece of quality from the likes of Adam Boyes or Liam Dickinson up front. Guiseley were not particularly exciting or interesting to watch but they maintained their solid collective effort and were gaining enough points to stay out of trouble. But wins became harder and harder to attain over the course of the season as the team remained one-dimensional and predictable and opposition learn how to neutralise them before too long. Oliver Norburn developed into a fine player for the team after arriving later in the season in November as his ability to score from distance became a useful trademark. Anthony Dudley added a new dimension in attack after joining on loan from Bury and Bower was just about able to keep the team going strong on limited resources. There was still a win here and there to keep them afloat but it was becoming clearer and clearer that the Lions are set for a relegation struggle in the second half of the season. The team really started to slide down the table from February onwards as the fixture backlog caught up with a limited squad. Goals really dried up, netting more than a single goal just twice in 12 games. They were still getting some decent draws against strong sides like Grimsby and Tranmere, but the gap to the bottom four was constantly decreasing for Bower’s men towards the business end of the season. They were handed a big boost by the return of action of striker Oli Johnson, their best player in the promotion-winning season, after a very long spell out injured since the start of the season. He brought a new option into the attack from March onwards and indeed Guiseley broke the dire run of form with a brilliant and unexpected 3:1 win over Wrexham, their first home win since Novemebr. It kept them afloat in the battle to stay up, but losses in the next two games meant that Guiseley dropped into the bottom four with just a game left. It meant that they were favourites to go down but it proved an utterly dramatic and gripping final day of the season. The Lions flew out of the blocks at home against Torquay and opened up a 3:0 lead. But the visiting side scored two goals to get the home side’s nerves jangling. But Guiseley scored a fourth goal to build up cushion. They still conceded another goal and the final last few minutes lasted more like hours. But they hung on for a 4:3 win and now were hoping for Halifax to drop points against Macclesfield. Indeed, the Shaymen only managed a 1:1 draw and were the ones to drop down. Guisely thus beat the drop against the odds and should feel quite fortunate to do so. Yet their spirit and togetherness in a tough league needs to be praised and Bower will be determined to build a more competitive squad that is better equipped with the challenges of this league.
