Joss Labadie: Newport can't settle for draws in bid to go up

The Exiles host 10th-placed Carlisle tonight (kick-off 7pm) before welcoming second-placed Cambridge to Rodney Parade on Saturday.

Avoiding defeat in midweek would maintain a three-point lead over the Cumbrians while a point would be a solid return against a United side who are closing in on automatic promotion.

But Labadie knows that the tight nature of the play-off hunt makes wins huge as the fixtures are ticked off.

"They will be two tough games with Cambridge at the top and Carlisle hot on our heels, but we will be looking to get maximum points," said the midfielder.

"We have an experienced team who have been here before with play-off campaigns and it's nothing new to us so that will hopefully stand us in good stead."

09.04.21 - Mansfield Town v Newport County - Sky Bet League 2 - Joss Labadie of Newport County scores the 1st goal of the match

County had to settle for a share of the spoils on Friday despite Labadie firing them into a lead after 74 minutes, with Mansfield striking with six minutes to go at Field Mill.

"The boys were gutted after going 1-0 up, we should really have seen the game out. We should have cleared our lines and it cost us, we went away feeling a bit aggrieved," said the 30-year-old.

"That shows the standards that we are setting ourselves now, we are going to places like Mansfield and are disappointed with a point.

"We want to be winning games, no matter who it's against. That's what we are going to continue striving to do and we are looking forward to Carlisle to put things right.

"We had the three points there for us and threw two away but hopefully we can rectify that next game.

"We could look back on the point and it might turn out to be one of the most important of the season but we will continue to strive for more.

"It's really tight up there, promotion is anyone's and it's still our own hands and we have to just worry about what we are doing."

How Newport fare on home soil will shape whether they can put the heat on the top three, cement a play-off berth or drop out of contention.

They host Carlisle, Cambridge, Crawley, Scunthorpe and Cheltenham with trips to Exeter and Southend.

05.04.21 - Newport County v Bolton Wanderers - EFL SkyBet League 2 - Joss Labadie and Ryan Taylor of Newport County celebrate at the end of the game.

Michael Flynn's side returned to Rodney Parade for the win against Bolton after two games at Cardiff City Stadium to take the strain off the surface and Labadie hopes they can dig out more precious successes.

"The pitch is better than it has been and we have to deal with it. Two teams have got to play on it and we will not make excuses," he said.

"It's not going to be as pretty as maybe it was at the start of the season but the most important thing is getting the results on the board.

"We are in the last four weeks, it's in our own hands and we will be doing our utmost to be in the mix, whether play-offs or automatic we will be full throttle.

"I can guarantee with these boys that we will leave it all out on the pitch and do our best."