Goalkeeper Nick Townsend praised his side’s resilience after earning a hard-fought draw against MK Dons at Rodney Parade on Saturday afternoon.
In a frantic contest, the Exiles shot-stopper made a number of impressive saves to earn a point for County, as both sides failed to find a winner in South Wales.
In what was the first league meeting between the two sides since 2019, Omar Bogle, Nathan Wood, Will Evans and Bryn Morris all went close for County and the 29-year-old was left satisfied with his team’s performance and result.
“I think we’re building on our performances week by week,” began Townsend.
“I made a few good saves today but I’ve got to give a lot to the lads as they worked so hard too.
“I’m more than happy with a point and a clean sheet, to be honest. It’s not just a clean sheet for me, it’s a clean sheet for the entire defensive unit and the team so we’re really pleased with that.
“MK Dons are a top team and you can see that the way they’ve been playing. Given their form, I would have definitely taken a clean sheet and a point before the game and it shows the resilience we’ve got as a team at the moment.
“I think we’ve been solid in the last few games. Teams have had a few chances against us, I’ve had to pull some saves off, and the lads have had to make some brilliant blocks, but overall I feel like we’ve been really solid and progressed as a group of players.
“The result is progress for us and now we’ve got to keep building and move on to another big game on Tuesday.”
Injuries have been a real issue for County in the last few games, with a number of key players absent from Saturday’s Sky Bet League Two clash. However, Townsend insists that his team must dig deep as a group through this difficult period.
“The injuries have been tough to deal with but we’ve got to stay together and dig in as a group,” he added.
“We know the situation with it all and hopefully, we’ll have a few of the lads coming back now so that’s only going to boost us going forward.
“I think we’ve proven that we can be solid as a team but everyone’s got to stay injury-free and keep building on everything we’ve done in the past few games.”
The Exiles are back in action on Tuesday night as they host Bristol Rovers in the EFL Trophy at Rodney Parade (7.30pm).