NEWPORT County AFC may have been held by relegation-threatened Macclesfield Town on Monday, but Scot Bennett is certain they can beat League Two champions Lincoln City on Saturday.
Bennett admitted that the 0-0 draw with the Silkmen at Moss Rose was a big disappointment as County chase a place in the play-offs.
But results elsewhere mean the Exiles, who are now unbeaten in seven games, are still the masters of their own destiny.
They know that three wins from their final three games will guarantee them a top-seven spot.
Michael Flynn’s men host Lincoln on Saturday and fellow promotion hopefuls Oldham Athletic next Tuesday before ending the campaign at Morecambe on May 4.
And Bennett is confident that County can get the better of the Imps, who were confirmed as champions on Monday.
“Lincoln are obviously a very good team,” said the midfielder.
“Hopefully they might take their foot off the gas a bit now but, knowing the manager there and how professional they all are, I’m sure they’ll be coming here to put in a good performance – no matter what team they put out.
“It’s going to be a tough game but we think it’s a very winnable game. On our day, we feel we can beat anyone in the league so we’ll be going into it looking to win.
“We’ve been really solid at home and nobody enjoys coming to play here.
“It won’t be any different for Lincoln – they won’t be looking forward to playing against us.
“If we perform, we’re capable of beating anyone. And if we play our game, we’ll win.
“I’m sure Lincoln will bring a few fans down and it’s going to be a bit of a party atmosphere after they won the league,” he added.
“But I’m sure our fans will make a lot of noise for us, like they always do. They’ll be the 12th man for us and we’ll be going out there for three points.”
Bennett is convinced that County should have had all three points against Sol Campbell’s Macclesfield but he’s staying positive.
“We felt like it was two points dropped,” said the 28-year-old.
“We felt like we should have won the game and we were disappointed to come away with just a draw, especially after the second half.
“We really attacked them and tried to get after them. You could see that from the substitutions that the gaffer made; he threw on three very attacking players.
“We’re a bit disappointed, but it’s not the end of the world. In the end it’s actually a good point and it’s still all to play for.
“It’s still in our hands and we’ve just got to take care of business at Rodney Parade now.
“We’ll go into the three games full of confidence. We’re on a really good run and we’ll be looking to win all three like we need to.”
The Exiles may not need to win all three if Bennett’s old club Exeter City, who are currently seventh, keep dropping points.
“We did check the scores after the game,” he admitted. “We were eager to see how everyone else had got on.
“I’m still in touch with a few of the guys at Exeter but I’m at Newport now and if we can get in there, I’d love it.
“I’d obviously be a little bit gutted for some of the boys at Exeter, but it’s every man for himself.
“Hopefully they’ll do us a favour along the way and drop a few more points.
“But we’ve got to believe we can do it and we’ve got to take care of business and hopefully win all three.”
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