ACCRINGTON Stanley boss John Coleman paid tribute to his players and insisted he always knew they were good enough to make the play-offs this season after they sealed their place in the top seven on Saturday.

Jimmy Ryan’s hat-trick gave Stanley a 3-1 home win against Barnet, confirming they will finish the season fifth in League Two – barring the unlikely scenario that Torquay, four points behind them, decide to appeal this week against a one-point deduction for fielding an ineligible player in February.

The Reds will take on sixth place – Torquay, Stevenage or Gillingham – in the play-off semi finals, with the away leg scheduled to be on Sunday, May 15 at 6.30pm and the second leg at home on Friday, May 20 at 7.45pm.

Should they make the final, it will be played at Old Trafford on Saturday, May 28 at 3pm.

Stanley’s final game of the regular season at Burton on Saturday will now be a dead rubber and Coleman expressed his delight at securing a play-off place with a game to spare.

The Reds were 19th in mid-February but have since claimed 11 wins in 18 games – one more than the 10-victory target their manager set.

“I’m delighted,” said Coleman, who brought in a new 4-2-3-1 system this season.

“We always believed we could get 72 points, that was the target we set.

“We decided we needed 10 wins and we’ve got them. All credit to the players, they’ve performed really well.

“We had games in hand and the style of play we’re playing has taken people by surprise this season.

“The players have believed in the system we’ve wanted to play and they’ve believed in each other.

“You can’t ask for any more than that.

“We were derailed a lot by not playing a lot of games and that hampered us a bit by not getting a lot of rhythm.

“If it hadn’t been for October we’d have been up automatic and that’s the disappointing thing.

“I think we were good enough to go up automatic this season but it’s not to be so we’ll have to give it our best shot. It can boil down to a lot of luck now in the play-offs and hopefully that goes in our favour.”

Coleman has hailed the way his players have dealt with various problems this season, with wages paid late on occasions and 10 wins from their last 11 games at home despite numerous issues with the Crown Ground playing surface.

But the boss knows reaching the play-offs is only part of the job.

“We haven’t achieved anything yet,” said Coleman, who looks set to be nominated for the manager of the month award this week for the third month in succession.

“We’ve made the play-offs and we’ve got to be proud of the way we’ve performed this season, but we’ll see where that takes us.

“I won’t let them do too much celebrating until there’s something to celebrate.

“I remember Yeovil getting to Wembley a few years ago and they were celebrating as if they’d already won it. I thought if that was me I’d be dragging them off the pitch.

“Each to their own, but whatever we do this season we can be proud of ourselves for the way we’ve applied ourselves in times of adversity.”