NEWPORT County AFC striker Danny Crow says the switch to 4-4-2 helped him break his goal duck, but insists he’ll do any job required of him to help the team.

The ex-Luton forward missed a late penalty to blow his chance of a hat-trick at Barrow last Saturday but his brace after a superb opener from Lee Evans secured a 3-0 win.

The three points took the Exiles back to the top of the Blue Square Bet Premier and team player Crow says that was more important than him finally getting on the scoresheet.

County host Southport this Saturday with Crow confident of adding to his goal tally after ending his drought at the eighth attempt.

"I was really happy to get off the mark," admitted the 26-year-old.

"It was a long time coming and it was a relief when that first goal went in.

"I didn’t put any pressure on myself, it was more banter from my teammates, but it was great to get two goals and to help us get a 3-0 win.

"Barrow is a hard place to go and that was the most important thing – to get three points after three games without a win."

Manager Justin Edinburgh brought in midfielder Lee Minshull for striker Jefferson Louis at the weekend and Crow says the tactical shake-up from 4-3-3 to 4-4-2 helped him.

"I’ve played out wide a lot this season and that has contributed to me not getting goals," he explained.

"The manager wanted to play Jefferson up top with me and Aaron O’Connor out wide and I was happy to play that role but I prefer playing through the middle.

"We played two up front on Saturday and I got two goals because I was in the positions to score but I’ll play wherever the manager wants me to play," he added.

"If I play out wide and I only score 10 goals this season then I’m happy to make that sacrifice if it means we are winning and up there around the top of the table."

Despite the lack of goals before the match at Barrow, Crow is happy with his own form and believes that this Exiles team can sustain a promotion challenge.

"I think I’ve done alright," he said. "I’ve been working hard and creating goals and the team has been doing well so I’m happy.

"We’ve made a good start and recovered from a little blip now and it’s nice to be on top of the table again.

"We’re not saying we’re going to win the league but we have to be quietly confident that we can stay around the play-offs this season, which would be a great achievement after last year.

"Barrow was tough and Southport will be another tough game but we believe we can do that."