TOP scorer Padraig Amond is adamant that tomorrow’s League Two clash at Grimsby Town is far more important than next week’s FA Cup replay against Middlesbrough.
County know they will welcome Premier League champions Manchester City to Newport if they can overcome Boro at Rodney Parade next Tuesday.
That would take the club’s FA Cup windfall over the £1m mark, but Amond insists the players are all focused on earning three points at Blundell Park.
And he admits that anything less than a win tomorrow will be a massive blow to the Exiles’ play-off hopes.
“I don’t care about Middlesbrough right now,” said Amond. “It’s all about Saturday.
“We haven’t let any game be a distraction for us so far and we don’t want to start now.
“The league is the most important thing for us. The cup is brilliant for the club money-wise, but the league is the bread and butter and that’s where you’ll be judged.
“We’ve got a lot of games coming up and we need to get right back on it,” he added.
“I think it’s eight games in 24 days – Saturday, Tuesday, Saturday, Tuesday – but we can’t use that as an excuse.
“We need to get back to winning ways on Saturday if we’re to have any aspirations of making the play-offs.
“We’ve got games in hand, but we need to get points on the board.”
Tuesday’s 0-0 draw at home to struggling Port Vale left County 13th in the table – seven points below seventh-placed Exeter City with a game in hand.
“It’s two points dropped,” said Amond. “We should have won the game.
“The only positive is the clean sheet. That’s two in a row in the league and only one goal conceded in the last three games. [Goalkeeper] Nick Townsend as done really well.
“I don’t think Port Vale really looked like scoring, but we made some poor decisions at the other end. It was really frustrating.
“We need to be better on the ball. We need to be braver and get those three points on the board, but it’s going to be a tough game at Grimsby.”
Amond helped the Mariners to win promotion to the Football League in the 2015-2016 season, scoring 33 goals in 46 appearances to be named the club’s player of the year.
“I loved my time there,” said the 30-year-old.
“It was one of the best years of my career on the pitch and off the pitch I met some fantastic people who I still stay in touch with.
“It’ll be nice to go back and see a few familiar faces, but I want to go back and frustrate them.
“I’ve done that a couple of times but the staff, the supporters and the people of Grimsby were very good to me so I’ll always be respectful of what they did for me and how they helped me.
“I’ve got nothing but good things to say about the club and I’m really looking forward to going back.”
Read more: Michael Flynn on Exiles' punishing fixture backlog
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