Gateshead are back in National League action when they host AFC Fylde at the International Stadium on Saturday evening.

Gateshead chairman Neil Pinkerton has called on the North East football community to get behind the National League club as they aim to secure a historic promotion this season.

The Heed will host struggling AFC Fylde on Saturday evening in a fixture that will be broadcast live via DAZN and are hoping to take advantage of the fact both Sunderland and Newcastle United are out of action on the same day by attracting a sizeable crowd for the game. Gateshead have announced several initiatives in a bid to get more supporters through the gates for their meeting with the Coasters after recent home games against FC Halifax Town and Sutton United both attracted attendances below the 700-mark.

Gateshead celebrate their equaliser in Saturday's 1-1 draw with Oldham Athletic (photo Charlie Waugh) | Charlie Waugh

placeholder image — Gateshead celebrate their equaliser in Saturday's 1-1 draw with Oldham Athletic (photo Charlie Waugh) | Charlie Waugh

However, with their push for promotion gathering pace over the last week, Pinkerton now wants the local community to throw their backing behind Carl Magnay and his players as they look to boost their push for a place in League Two.

He told The Echo: “We are third top scorers in the league, despite losing Owen Oseni in January. Some of the goals that we’ve scored as recently as last week were amazing. It’s all testament to what you are going to witness at the International Stadium. We have a big game against AFC Fylde on Saturday, it’s a 5.30 kick-off, it’s live on DAZN and we want to give the players that extra backing from the stands that they deserve.

“We believe that, with a strong team effort, we can keep pushing and I’m sure they will be really pleased with what supporters will see on the pitch. We’ve had a drive this week, we’ve reached out to grassroots clubs offering free child tickets and with the big two on our doorstep not playing, we are offering free hot dogs for kids and a meet and great with the players from 4 o’clock. We are hoping to create a good atmosphere in the bid for promotion.”

Gateshead’s progress since their return to the top tier of non-league has continued to gather pace despite suffering a number of setbacks. Former manager Mike Williamson was tempted away by an offer from League Two club MK Dons after making a promising start to last season and there was a further blow when the club were prevented from competing in the National League play-offs due to an issue with the International Stadium security of tenure.

Just months after guiding the Heed to their historic FA Trophy win against Solihull Moors, Williamson’s successor Rob Elliot accepted an offer to move into the EFL with League One strugglers Crawley Town. Club stalwart Carl Magnay stepped into the lead role in the dugout for the first time earlier in the campaign and he inherited a sizeable injury list that has robbed him of the services of the likes of club captain Greg Olley and key defenders Kenton Richardson and Joe Grayson for large parts of the season. The situation was heightened in January when key midfielder Callum Whelan joined Carlisle United and top goalscorer Owen Oseni completed a move to Scottish Premiership side St Mirren.

Gateshead wing-back Luke Hannant celebrates after scoring one of his two penalties during his side's 4-0 win at Wealdstone (photo Jack McGraghan) | Jack McGraghan

However, Gateshead still remain firmly in the hunt for promotion into the EFL and could move to within two points of the top three in the table if they can see off Fylde and results elsewhere go their way. Should they claim a play-off spot, Pinkerton believes the Heed will be able to continue their promotion push after receiving ‘positive feedback’ from the application they submitted to the EFL board.

“As a board, we are really happy with where we are and the players and supporters should be proud of the achievements so far,” he explained. “We had to deal with our usual January circus but I think we are going to come out of that even stronger when we get a few players back from injury. But are trying to maintain a strong push towards the end of the season to make sure we are in a good position for promotion. We have submitted our application for promotion to the EFL and although not official, we’ve had positive feedback from that.”

Magnay could hand a home debut to new signing Ryan Bartley after the Derby County defender joined the Heed on a permanent deal earlier this week.