ATTITUDE is more important that ability according to former Newport County AFC manager Graham Westley, who is chief executive of performance management consultants the AIMITA Corporation.

That belief did not help Westley during his unhappy stint in South Wales and his critics would no doubt suggest that he could have done with some ‘performance management’ of his own at Rodney Parade.

But it’s clear that the mental preparation of the County players will be absolutely crucial as the club’s battle to avoid relegation from League Two enters the final five games.

When Westley was sacked in the aftermath of the humiliating 4-0 home defeat to Leyton Orient – a result that looks even more extraordinary now than it did at the time – the Exiles were a massive 11 points from safety with 12 games to go.

They didn’t have just one foot in the grave, they were dead and buried – doomed to a return to the National League. Or so it seemed.

Fast forward five weeks and they are just three points behind Hartlepool United and four off Cheltenham Town with 15 still to play for.

Westley’s replacement Michael Flynn has defied all logic and expectation and inspired his hometown club to four wins in seven games and 13 points out of a possible 21.

Before Flynn took over as caretaker boss the Exiles had won just five times in 34 league games under Westley and his predecessor Warren Feeney.

And they haven’t been out of the relegation zone since November.

But a home win over struggling Yeovil Town on Good Friday, coupled with defeat for Hartlepool at home to Carlisle United, would see them climb to the Holy Grail of 22nd place with just four games to go.

And that’s where the mental side of the equation comes in.

After Saturday’s superb 1-0 win at Exeter City the away dressing room at St James Park was blasting out Ain’t No Stoppin’ Us Now by McFadden & Whitehead.

But Queen’s Under Pressure could well be the soundtrack for the Yeovil match.

Quizzed on County’s survival hopes a few weeks ago, star man Sean Rigg highlighted why he felt they still had a chance.

“It’s doable," said Rigg, who should be back from injury to face Yeovil.

“The teams above us are under more pressure than us really because we’ve been written off.

“We’re going into games with no pressure. We just want to enjoy ourselves.

“Teams like Cheltenham and Hartlepool have got more to lose than us and they’re going to panic.

“One team always does seem to slip up at the end so we’ll just keep going into every game playing with freedom and enjoying it and hopefully pick up the three points.”

Rigg was speaking after his free-kick earned a point at home to Luton Town and the intervening weeks have shown him to be correct about County’s chances and how those of their relegation rivals.

While Flynn’s men have picked up 13 points in seven games, Hartlepool and Cheltenham have earned only four.

County have prospered thanks to the sense of freedom that the caretaker boss has managed to inject into the squad, something he too admits.

“I think it helped a little bit when I took over that there was kind of no pressure,” said Flynn last week.

“We were 11 points adrift, it was backs-to-the-wall and if we got out of it was going to take a miracle.

“I’m an honest guy and that maybe lightened the load a little bit but I put my own pressure on myself.

“Our performances have raised expectation and belief and that’s credit to the boys,” he added.

“They’re quietly confident, they know what they’ve got to do and we’ve just got to make sure they don’t take their foot off the gas or switch off because we’ve still got a huge job to do.”

Even after Saturday’s shock win there is still a huge job to do and Flynn now has to cope with those raised expectations.

And, along with assistant Wayne Hatswell and 'first team management consultant' Lennie Lawrence, he has to help the players deal with the extra pressure that those expectations bring with them.

It’s not really a case of the pressure being off for County now.

They have given themselves a genuine chance of staying up, something that looked highly unlikely only weeks ago, so the mind set inevitably changes.

They have the target in their sights now and they need to turn that pressure into a positive.

It’s a new challenge for Flynn and his players but, given the fight they’ve shown and the confidence flowing through the squad, it’s one that they can meet head on and one that they simply must overcome.