Mike Flynn has warned his Newport County AFC side that they will have to be at their very best if want to get a result tomorrow against League Two’s form side Tranmere Rovers.
No side has picked up more than the 12 points accumulated by the Super White Army across the most recent five League Two fixtures.
Micky Mellon’s side have been on an unbelievable run of late which has put them on the cusps of the automatic promotion places – winning eight and drawing one of their last ten matches.
And Flynn is under no illusions as to how tough the match will be tomorrow, regardless of the fact the Exiles have home advantage.
“It’s a tough game against a very good team,” he affirmed.
“Micky Mellon has done a very good job, not only getting them out of the National League but the way they’ve kicked on again this season.
“They’ve been very good and apart from Tuesday night, they’ve been on one of the best runs out of all the teams in the league this season.
“We’ve got to be on our game. It’s no different to any other game, no different just because it’s at home.
“If we’re on it home or away, we’re a very good team. If we’re not, if we start sloppy, make silly mistakes then you usually get beat.
“It’s a free hit for us really because all the pressure is really on Tranmere at the minute.
“I just hope the boys go out, enjoy it, and take their chance. A win Saturday really does put the pressure on the teams above.”
This could be the start of a crucial week for the Exiles in terms of play-off ambitions with Tranmere being the start of three tough fixtures for the team.
County are again at home in midweek when facing a Swindon Town side who have hit some form and are challenging for the play-offs themselves, before heading to Cambridge United next weekend who will be looking for revenge over the Exiles having lost the previous five meetings.
The Swindon match is also the first of the games in hand that the Exiles have over the teams currently occupying the play-offs so the picture could be a lot clearer come next weekend.
Flynn continued: “I don’t apply pressure to myself. I’ve said this before and a few others have as well, pressure is when you’re fighting for your country, doctors saving lives and trying to put food on your families table.
“That’s what pressure is. Football is a fantastic environment to try and raise your standards on yourself. Football owes nobody anything, if you think it’s done then you tend to get a walloping.
“We’ll be striving to finish as high as we can and hopefully that means we go on a run now until the end of the season to scrape into the play-offs.
“Momentum is important of course. You’ve just seen Tranmere’s momentum where they won seven in a row, unbeaten in nine before Tuesday so that was great momentum.
“If we can have that sort of run until the end of the season, then we’ll be in the play-offs.”
He added: “We’ve got another big game on Tuesday as well.
“We need to try and take care of this one, get the three points and that would set up a blockbuster against Swindon. But that’s only if we get the three points tomorrow.”
The beauty of League Two is in the fact that no one can predict what will happen matchday to matchday, week to week, season to season.
MK Dons dropped outside of the play-offs before winning at Rodney Parade in early February and now occupy second place in the table after seven wins in nine.
Notts County and Macclesfield Town both looked doomed at various points of the season but are now only goal difference or one point away from safety respectively.
“There’s going to be a load more twists and turns before the end of the season,” Flynn admitted.
“Bury FC are having a bit of a wobble, Mansfield have come off it a little bit, even Lincoln have dropped points recently.
“Notts County have put a run together at the bottom and they’re nearly out of it. Morecambe have been winning.
“You just can’t predict it. It’s a strange league.
“Tomorrow is the sixth of April and the season is still alive. There’s not been many years here recently where that’s happened.
“It’s good times. We had a fantastic FA Cup run, done a lot better in the CheckaTrade Trophy so it’s been a season that has improved on last year already.
“We’ve got four weeks to go, eight games, let’s see what we can do.”