STANLEY need to reach 50 points as quickly as possible to ensure their League Two survival, according to manager John Coleman.

The Reds made it back-to-back home wins with a 2-1 victory over Colchester United on Saturday thanks to goals from Billy Kee and Matty Pearson.

That puts them on 33 points, four above the relegation zone, before the visit of Cambridge United tonight (7.45pm).

But Coleman has urged his side, who will be stretched due to suspensions against the U’s, to keep their run at the Wham Stadium going so they can claw themselves closer to what he considers the safety mark.

He said: “I think 50 points will keep you up this year and we’ve got to do our utmost to get them on the board as quick as possible.

“It was a relief to get past the 30-points mark because sometimes that can be a weight around your neck at this stage of the season.

“But we need to cement our home form. We’ve won the last two and we need to get better results here, which in turn will hopefully lead to bigger crowds.”

The upturn in form in East Lancashire is a turnaround from earlier in the season when it was points on the road that kept the Reds just above the danger line.

Coleman added: “It’s been a freak season, this season and you can over-analyse it, but we had to start scoring goals. We were making enough chances to do that, and once you start scoring goals it takes pressure off everybody – the back four and the forwards play with a bit more freedom and confidence.

“That lends itself to more attacking play and it’s the conundrum you’re constantly facing as a manager.

“It’s easy being a manager when things are going well. People say, ‘He’s doing a great job’, but you are obviously having to do a great job to keep winning.

“The hard part is having to turn form around when you know there’s not a lot wrong.

“That’s why you get a lot of the blame when things go wrong.

“You might feel hard done by but that’s the nature of the job.

“It’s up to myself, Jimmy and the rest of the staff to keep the lads in a positive frame of mind and when things are going wrong we’ve got to address them and change things.”

Shaun Derry’s Cambridge arrive safely in mid-table and having pulled off a come-from-behind 3-2 win over Newport on Saturday, and Coleman warned they will prove tough opponents.

Coleman added: “They are one of those teams that can be good on their day, like most in this league.

“It will be a trappy game but we know that we’re playing well.”

The reverse fixture in October had a bizarre climax as Stanley missed two injury-time penalties in a 2-1 defeat that also saw the U’s reduced to nine men.

“I don’t think even the more ardent Cambridge fan could believe that they won the game at their place,” said Coleman.

“It was a freak game,” said Coleman, “but the disappointing thing for me is that was the start of our bad run.

“That’s where it all seemed to go wrong and it would be nice to put that to bed.”