Oldham have secured three victories in their previous five matches and find themselves in the Vanarama National League play-off spots, despite a slow start to the season under former manager David Unsworth.
Following a string of impressive performances since Micky Mellon took over as Latics manager, Oldham is currently third in the form table and will play York next.
Ardley anticipates a challenging game against a team that has the third-best away record in the league and thinks City will need to play at its very best to win.
“I know that Oldham is tough because I’ve watched them; they’re in really good form, have really good players, and a really good manager,” Ardley said.
We need to play exceptionally well if we want to win this, but I haven’t told the guys as much.
You consider what we can accomplish, how we can accomplish it, what we can add, and what we can do to aggravate them.
“We’ve worked as hard as we can today with the entire team, making sure we know what’s coming and making sure we know how to approach the game. We recognise the magnitude of the assignment for the next two games.
Some players require a short practice today because they are still recovering from Saturday, and you need to make sure all of your tactical messages are understood.
“You have to train for an hour and a half or longer, trying to get everything perfect while doing a lot of stop-start training due to fatigue.”
Since the two had a falling out when playing for different teams, Ardley also acknowledged that he had a lot of time for Oldham manager Mellon.
“He’s made some good additions; he’s made a couple with the addition of Andy Dallas and (Joe) Garner, and he’s made some slight adjustments.”
“From what I’ve heard so far, they have excellent players and he’s come in and made them much more organised than they were.”
“I’ve met him at Tranmere and a few other clubs, and I had a great experience with him at Fleetwood. We’ve had a few meetings.”
He’s been in there and done a tremendous job; he’s got them going, and I always have a beer with him after.
“We were aware of Oldham’s potential, and their recent manager change has really helped them succeed because they had a lot of talented players.”
“He has begun to bring out the best in them and he has strengthened the team with more experienced players who are able to provide him with a performance every week.”
With the team just above the National League relegation zone, Ardley also begged for support from the crowd, saying he hoped that the supporters will continue to be a vital part of the team by supporting the players.
“They’ve been excellent; I understand that there were some boos following the game out of displeasure.
“When you don’t win a game at home, everyone gets frustrated. We’re working really hard, and I’m working day and night to get ready for the next game.
“The players are giving it their all, the staff is working hard, and they care.”
We’ll keep giving everything we have because that’s the best course of action for us to follow if they continue to support us and give everything they have.
“As a club, the last thing we want is for their to be a rift or slight division where people start to get upset, start criticising, and lose confidence.
“Before moving forward after that, we need to stick together for two more months and 13 more games while trying to push the club over the finish line.”
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