ASSISTANT boss Garry Simpson says Barrow AFC will have to be at their best to turn in a winning display in front of a live TV audience.

The Bluebirds' 12-match National League unbeaten run comes under the spotlight on Saturday lunchtime when another in-form team - Eastleigh - visit Holker Street for a top-seven scrap being screened on the BT Sports One channel (12.15pm kick-off).

Draws at Woking and Wrexham have seen Paul Cox's men maintain their place in the top five, but just five points separates the next seven teams beneath leaders Forest Green, in what is an ultra-competitive division.

One of those clubs is Eastleigh, who lie just one point and two places behind AFC after Tuesday's fixtures, which saw the Hampshire side beat Torquay 3-0 while Barrow salvaged a draw at Wrexham through Ryan Yates' late leveller.

Assessing what he expects will be a tough game, Simpson said: "Eastleigh are a big club in terms of their resources and the players they have signed, and they have had some good results of late.

"They are in good form and we are on a good little run so we just need to try and get back on track with three points.

"It's an early kick-off, and in front of TV cameras so hopefully we can put in a good performance in front of our home supporters."

Byron Harrison gave Barrow an early lead in both the 1-1 draw at Woking and the 2-2 draw at Wrexham, and while Simpson is disappointed AFC couldn't have gone on to take maximum points from those two games, he is also pleased they kept their long unbeaten run intact.

He said: "I don't think we've played particularly well in the last two games but we've been away from home both times and we're still unbeaten and that's the positive we've got to take into Saturday.

"In the first 20 minutes or half an hour we played well at Wrexham and we could probably have forced the issue and scored another goal, which would have made it a bit easier for us.

"But they had the new manager syndrome whereby everyone raises their game another ten or 15 per cent for the new manager (Dean Keates) they were at home with a decent crowd behind them and it proved to be a difficult night.

"But we hung in there and managed to salvage a draw out of it which keeps the unbeaten run going in front of a decent travelling support from us as well."

Simpson is pleased to see the squad strengthened this week with the arrival of central defender Myles Anderson, a 26-year-old former Blackburn Rovers player, who has spent the last three seasons in Italy.

"He has been signed like one or two others to try and give us a bit of depth," said Simpson. "We know we are going to get players who are suspended, players who are injured and players who will have a loss of form.

"And we didn't think the depth of the squad we had could cope with that, so what the gaffer is trying to do is add depth to the squad where we need it throughout the season so we have a big enough squad to cope.

"Whether he will be involved on Saturday it's too early to say. We will train on Thursday and Friday and see where we are."

Meanwhile Shrewsbury have recalled AFC loan man Dominic Smith following the appointment of Paul Hurst as their new manager.