Eastleigh manager Richard Hill won’t be looking at the Vanarama Conference table anytime soon.

The Spitfires head had sleepless nights from February until his side won the Conference South last season because he was constantly monitoring the league table as his side aimed to become champions.

But Hill is not about to make the same mistake this term, as it would simply drive him mad.

His Eastleigh side are unbeaten in six matches in all competitions and travel to an Aldershot Town side tomorrow (3pm) jubilant from their FA Cup first round victory over Portsmouth on Wednesday night at the Recreation Ground.

With games in hand over a number of clubs in the top five, the Silverlake Stadium side are just four points off a play-off berth going into the Hampshire derby, which the Spitfires won 1-0 in August thanks to a last-gasp Ben Wright goal.

But that hasn’t tempted the boss into analysing the league table.

“That’s a recipe for sleepless nights,” he said. “I’ve learnt my lesson from last season.

“I had sleepless nights from February until we won promotion.

“You can over-think things. You’ll be looking at the league thinking ‘they’ve played them and if we win against them we’ll be there in the league’ and that’s not good.

“I was very tired at the end of the season and if I did it again I’d end up going mad.”

The Shots are in good form, having won three games in row, including the FA Cup victory that had the Rec in raptures of celebration after Mark Molesley's late goal secured a 1-0 win. They've also kept clean sheets in all of those matches.

Meanwhile, Eastleigh haven’t played for a week-and-a-half since the 1-1 draw with Forest Green Rovers last Tuesday, after last weekend’s match against Lincoln City was postponed due to a fire at the Imps’ Southampton hotel.

Hill knows it will be a tough match against their county counterparts and was there to watch them win against Pompey.

He was also full of respect for their manager Andy Scott. “It’s going to be a tough match,” he said. “I don’t know what the atmosphere will be like on Saturday, but the atmosphere on Wednesday was good.

“And it’s a massive result for them, so they’re going into the game with momentum. But you expect a tough challenge anywhere in this league – it’s unforgiving.

“It’s a bit of a derby with them being one of the closest teams to us.

“I’ve got a lot of respect for what Andy Scott did last season and this term,” he added. “You’ve got to give him credit, he started with a team on minus ten points and they finished 19th. You don’t get enough credit as a manager, but that’s the industry.

“A player takes the glory if something goes well and if it doesn’t, the manager’s the one that gets the blame. And you look at what he’s done this season.

“They’ve just knocked Portsmouth out of the FA Cup, for goodness sake.”

Eastleigh nearly have a fully fit team to select from, but Dean Beckwith will serve the last game of his three-match suspension after getting sent-off in the 3-2 win over Chester earlier this month.

Apart from long-term injuries in the form of defender Jamie Turley and keeper Lewis Noice, Hill’s only other injury worry is over left back Michael Green, who hasn’t trained all week after playing with a strained muscle in his backside. Craig McAllister is fit after playing with a sickness bug last week and goalkeeper Ross Flitney has shaken off a tight groin, while midfielder Jamie Collins is also expected to be back in contention after returning to training this week.