Ian Allinson wants to see the passion and performance level displayed against Eastbourne repeated when St Albans City’s neighbours from across the M1 visit Clarence Park on Boxing Day.

The victory on the south coast was the first league win since October and with the festive fixtures pairing Saints and Hemel Hempstead Town once more, the boss knows his players need to deliver a similar effort.

Allinson said: “They’ve got a new manager and he’s made some changes.

“They’ve got some good players and are a good side but it’s a derby and we have to make sure we turn up first and foremost.

“And I’m sure if you see fight and aggression and the pace and the power and the willingness to go and win a game of football that you saw against Eastbourne week in and week out, then people will accept it.

“Over the last few weeks we’ve been a bit lame in some of our performances.

“I’m not asking people to be overly aggressive and kick people up in the air but I just want them to go and press a little bit quicker and a little bit harder and when we lose the ball we get back in numbers.

“We did that against Eastbourne.”