MANAGER Graham Westley has given Newport County AFC “real hope” of avoiding relegation, according to Mansfield Town boss Steve Evans.

The two sides meet at the One Call Stadium on Saturday and Evans believes Westley has improved the Exiles since taking over from Warren Feeney in October.

County remain bottom of the League Two table but they have picked up nine points in their last eight games.

“The first thing I’ll do is give Graham enormous credit,” said Evans.

“I think when he went in there, they were pretty much sunk and he’s given them real hope.

“They’ve lost one game in seven or eight and I’ve watched the full re-run of their visit to Cambridge last week and there’s only one decision that the FA could make which was to overturn the red card given to young Mitchell Rose.

“If that’s not given and there’s no penalty and it’s a corner like it should be, then it’s a very credible draw at a very difficult place to go.”

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Evans (above) added: “I think possibly if we’d be taking on the team that we took on at the start of the season, I think it would be quite comfortably a Stags’ win.

“But Graham has made the difference which has given them a real fighting chance of staying in the Football League.”

After a nine-match unbeaten run came to an end against Grimsby Town last week, the Stags sit in eighth position in the table.

Defender Hayden White will be suspended for tomorrow’s match after being sent off in last week’s defeat to Grimsby.

Evans also revealed that Kyle Howkins received a set-back in his comeback from his knee injury in mid-week and the club is awaiting the results of a scan which will reveal how serious the setback is.

However, centre-half George Taft is progressing nicely and performed well in a behind-closed-doors match earlier this week.

County will welcome back Darren Jones from suspension and hope to have fellow defender Mark O’Brien available after he was forced off in Tuesday’s 1-1 draw against Morecambe.

Fellow defenders Sid Nelson and Scot Bennett and midfield trio Joss Labadie, Josh Sheehan and Sean Rigg are also close to returning to fitness.