New Market Drayton Town boss Matt Johnson encouraged by positive reaction

Johnson took charge of the Northern One West strugglers last week but has already brought about an improvement on the field.

A 1-0 defeat away to Mossley on Saturday was followed by a dramatic 1-1 draw at home to Newcastle Town on Monday night, which earned Town just their sixth point of the season.

Johnson has wasted little time improving his squad with seven new signings checking in and has been delighted by the response of his newcomers and the existing members of the squad.

“There has been an outstanding reaction from all of the players,” he said. “The attitude is far more positive and there is a good spirit.

“The new players have helped with that but the players that were already here have bought into things as well.

“And I have been pleased with the two performances. We competed with Mossley for an hour or so on Saturday and then I think their fitness told.

“But our fitness levels were better on Monday and it was good to get a point because that is something we haven’t picked up for a while. It was a good honest display.”

A dramatic final 10 minutes on Monday night saw Drayton keeper Ash Rawlins save a penalty before Newcastle took an 89th minute lead. But Drayton showed great character to battle back and net a stoppage time equaliser through debutant Eshan Greer.

Johnson will be looking for a similar level of commitment at Glossop tomorrow.

“It will be a tough game, but we have to go again,” he said. “The players have been asked to work twice as hard and they have responded superbly.

“We had to stop the goals against and we have worked hard on being more solid and the last two performances have given us a good foundation to build from.

“As long as every player leaves nothing out there, that’s all I can ask for.”