IT’S been a great week if you are a fan of Wales and I’ve enjoyed myself immensely.

Not only have Wales taken a pretty big stride towards Euro 2016 qualification, but hopefully on Saturday I got to show there is still life in the old dog yet!

It was lovely to make my comeback for the first team on Saturday for what was a really vital win for us against York City.

We might not have quite hit the same standards as we did in previous weeks, but sometimes you’ve just got to grind out the three points and move onto the next one.

I was very happy with my return, mainly for the fact I didn’t have any problems and secondly because I thought I did quite well, the circumstances were well suited for someone with a bit of experience to come on against ten men and just help us to keep a good shape.

We aren’t always the most vocal of teams and no one has ever accused me of being quiet. Never!

You never really know with an injury, you do your strength and conditioning work, but I was still thrilled to not only get my chance but to have no further setbacks.

It’s incredibly tough as a midfielder at the moment to get a game in our side, Adam Chapman and Mark Byrne have been absolutely superb recently and Lee Minshull hasn’t been far behind either.

That leaves me, Yan Klukowski and now Max Porter all battling to get some minutes and it’s a test I relish.

I love playing for Newport County, but I am far too long in the tooth – I turned 34 yesterday - to worry about if I am in the starting XI or on the bench, whatever my role, I just need to keep my head down and get on with things. Because whatever the gaffer does he knows he’s always got my support.

Before I move on from matters with the first team, I really want to pay a special tribute to Max, who finally got his season off and running on Saturday.

Max as you all know has had the entire midfield’s share of injuries and all the time it’s been the same thing, problems with his groins.

It’s brutal when you are injured and can’t see light at the end of the tunnel and Max has really been through it, there have been times (I’m sure he won’t mind me saying) when he’s been really down.

However, he’s worked and worked and worked on his rehab and now finally it has paid off and he’s back in the mix for us.

That’s a reward for a man who never cuts corners, never shirks responsibility and has been 100% focused on getting back.

Max has built a real affinity with Newport County, not many people will know that he had a bet with the academy lads last season. He challenged them to win a game and when they did, true to his word, he paid for a couple of hundred quid of equipment for them. It was a fantastic gesture from someone who really cares about the club.

It’s been a good week as well in terms of the day job, we’ve had a couple of great training seasons with the academy boys, really intense sessions. I felt like they’d dropped off a bit recently, it’s been tough for them to be without the best three players – all with the first team now – but they really had a good intensity about them again.

It was great for all of us that Regan Poole got called up to the Wales U17s after being on stand-by last month, but you can’t help like feeling they are a bit late to the party.

Put it this way, if Wales U17s already have three central defenders available who are all better than Regan; then our future is looking very bright indeed!

Speaking of which, as a proud Welshman I’ve got to add to the plaudits for the national side that now really have a proper chance of qualifying for France in 2016.

I watched both games, against Bosnia and Cyprus and it was great to see everyone believing in the cause, from the players to the management to the fans, who are slowly but surely coming back.

You saw someone like Gareth Bale, how much it meant to him and there is clearly something special building.

For me it’s a great credit to Osian Roberts, the most meticulously prepared man in football and as long as he’s got a main role, the future of Welsh football is in good hands.