NEWPORT County AFC defender David Pipe is aiming to get one over on some old friends again tomorrow night as the Exiles take on his former club Forest Green Rovers at Rodney Parade.

Pipe joined Rovers after leaving County in 2014 and captained the Gloucestershire side to the National League play-off final in 2016.

The former Wales international then joined Eastleigh before returning to Newport in January 2017.

After helping Michael Flynn’s men beat the drop last season, the 34-year-old has just earned a new 12-month contract.

And he’s not given up on a late push for the League Two play-offs this season.

County dropped to 14th in the table after Saturday’s home clash with Accrington Stanley was postponed but they remain nine points off the top seven with a game in hand.

Forest Green, who also saw their match at Crewe Alexandra postponed on Saturday, are 19th – just six points above the bottom two.

“I had two years there, I was club captain and the two years I was there was the highest the club had ever been,” recalled Pipe, who helped the Exiles to a 4-0 win in the reverse fixture at the New Lawn in October.

“I’m still close with a lot of people there but you obviously move on in football.

“They will try to take three points off us but there’s no animosity at all.

“There’s a couple of players still there who I played with and I know lots of the backroom staff and the chairman, who I had a good relationship with,” he added.

“The manager [Mark Cooper] came in towards the end of my time there and I didn’t officially work under him but I know him and I’ve played against his teams for 10 years or so.

“But my main focus is on Newport now.”

And Pipe believes the Exiles are a match for anyone at Rodney Parade.

“I fancy us beating anyone at home and that’s not being disrespectful to who comes here, we are a tough team to beat,” he said.

“If we do things right, then we will get the points. Without going into last year too much because we are a different outfit and a stronger outfit, we closed a serious points gap.

“So why not do it this year, at the other end, and have that late push?”