All I want for Christmas is two wins over Oxford - Holleran

Brakes go into the festive period just two points clear of the bottom three after three successive away fixtures failed to yield any points.

However, following on from lengthy trips to the top two, a double-header against Oxford City and a home game against fellow strugglers Bradford Park Avenue offer Leamington the chance to kick-start their season.

“Christmas and January are massive,” said Holleran.

“And if we are still where we are we’ll have to take a good hard look at things.

“But I’m 100 per cent confident we can put some points on the board against the teams who will be a lot more in our zone and pull away from the bottom.”

Saturday’s 1-0 defeat at Guiseley was scant reward for another industrious performance from Brakes.

A 49th-minute strike from Gavin Rothery was all that separated the sides and Holleran said it was indicative of the gulf in resources between the respective clubs.

“Guiseley are a very good side with very good players and I used them as a benchmark when we came up.

“They’re backed by one of the richest blokes in Leeds and I’ve got a lot of time for their manager Mark Bower.

“But we’ve played them four times and lost by a goal every time.

“Again we were in the game on Saturday and we matched them for long periods and created the better chances.

“But the reality is that when Guiseley play pretty well and we play pretty well they will invariably beat us.”

Holleran is still working on adding to his squad but admits he may not be able to bring in reinforcements before the Boxing Day clash at home to Oxford.

However, he says he is delighted with his recent transfer dealings.

“We’ve been close to a couple of things and been blown out of the water.

“But in (Ross) Atkins and Delroy Gordon we have already seriously improved the spine.”