Stevenage have three dates with destiny if they are to reach the League One play-offs according to manager Steve Evans - and they have to approach all three like their lives depend on it.

Boro are three points behind the play-off places after a poor run of one win in their last nine games.

That came last time out though, a 2-1 success against Barnsley, and it has transformed the feeling around the club, as belief they could still clinch sixth place returns in a flood.

Burton Albion at the Lamex is first up on Saturday, and it has to end in another victory says the boss.

Evans said: "Like a lot of people know, we should have won a lot of the games we've drawn. It wasn’t a case of us holding on for draws. 

"We just couldn't get enough goals to win games, there were too many 0-0s and that tells you we were dominating but not scoring. 

"We made it clear to the players that even to have any remote chance, we’re in a position where we need to win every game. 

"Hence the words after the [Barnsley] game. At 70 minutes, it’ll be like the cavalry, we’ll be trying to win it. 

"That will be the same in the next three games because draws are not good enough anymore.  

"We need to be winning to apply the pressure on Blackpool, Oxford and Lincoln." 

The great thing about that performance on Tuesday evening, apart from the three points, was the amount of chances created.

And while the one criticism was they should have converted them more, Evans believes that is the style of football they need to play in the remaining fixtures.

He said: "[Barnsley manager] Neil Collins came in for a beer afterwards and he said at one point in the second half he had turned to his staff and said it might be damage limitation. 

"We went 2-1 ahead and their goalkeeper made a couple of really good saves. It was wave upon wave of attacks. 

"We should have probably killed the game completely but it was a really good performance from the boys, a strong performance full of energy, full of the DNA we’ve had for a couple of years here, and when we’re like that, we’re a difficult team to stop. 

"We're going to have to work really hard in the next three games but it is simply it's one game at a time.

"It’s four play-off finals to try and get a chance of [actual] play-off football."