Sutton United’s Mr Consistency Alan Bray has every faith boss Paul Doswell’s squad is still good enough to make the play-offs, despite back-to-back league defeats.

Doswell’s men followed up last week’s 2-1 loss to Tooting & Mitcham with a 1-0 reverse at AFC Hornchurch, to leave them two points adrift of the top five - but with at least one game in hand on most of their rivals.

It means United have lost as many matches as they have won as they struggle to find the consistency in the league to match that which they found in a run to the first round proper of the FA Cup.

But Bray, the longest serving player in the current squad with a 129 appearances under his belt, believes reaching the play-off target remains a realistic target under Doswell.

“They had one shot on goal at the weekend and won the game. It was an awful feeling,” he said.

“We had the chances to win, but we have had too many games like that this year. I think we have won eight and lost eight now which is not good enough from this squad.

“We need to string a couple of results together. A good unbeaten run would push us up to fourth or third.

“I think the players we have here are good enough to comfortably get us to the play-offs and I think the squad is good enough to get promoted.

“That is the aim and it would be a massive achievement if we could get there.”

And nothing would give the Fulham-based 23-year-old left-back greater pleasure than getting to the promised land - if only for those at the club who have helped him since switching to Gander Green Lane from Sunday league football as a teenager.

“If we get there I don’t think we’d come straight back down,” he added.

“The people at the club deserve it. It is a great club. The people here have been really nice to me since I came here .

“I only knew one person when I came down so it was hard to start with. I was given a chance and managed to keep my place.

“The season we got relegated was miserable. I’m enjoying myself here now and while you’re doing that there is no need to go elsewhere.”

Sutton’s next three games: Dec 12 Kingstonian (h), 14 Tooting & Mitcham (a), 19 Margate (a).