Keeper Mark Howard produced a number of saves at key moments on Tuesday night as he did his bit to help the team through to the next stage.
Having joined the club on a short-term deal midway through October, he has so far kept five clean sheets in 11 appearances in all competitions, adding experience to the squad at what is proving to be a vital stage of the season.
“I’ve spoken to Mark – I speak to all the players – but we’ve had a couple of conversations,” manager Keith Millen said. “He shows his experience around the place, he’s a really good pro in and around the training ground, and he shows his experience on the pitch.
“He was very close to getting probably three of the pens against Lincoln, he guessed the right way, and credit to him because he did his homework a little bit on what their penalty takers might be doing.
“Mark has been a big part of what we’ve done so far, he’s an experienced keeper and he talks … a lot, actually! He talks a very good game.
“Those discussions are ongoing, he knows how I feel, I know how he feels, and that’s an ongoing discussion.”
On the injury situation with Joe Riley and Brennan Dickenson, he explained: “Joe definitely won’t be back for Saturday.
“He sees a specialist on Wednesday so we should know more. We’re still waiting to hear what his problem is.
“With Brennan it’s one step forward, one step back at the moment. Hopefully he’s back soon because we need as many players available as we can.
“He’s still feeling it and he hasn’t trained yet. We’ll have to see how he goes over the next few days.”
“I keep saying, we’re looking after the players as they need to because we have some tired legs in there,” he added. “We give them Wednesday off to rest, get them in Thursday and see who’s fit.
“Aches and pains aren’t so bad after a win. They’ll feel a lot better and have a smile on their face, as we all will, because winning football matches is a good feeling. The more you do it, the better it is a habit to get into.”
