WHETHER it’s keeping an eye on him in the box or dealing with a long-throw missile, Newport County AFC defender Matt Baker is ready for a reunion with one of his early mentors when Mickey Demetriou returns to Rodney Parade.
The Exiles will have their work cut out tomorrow afternoon when trying to get past a Crewe defence that have kept three clean sheets on the spin in a four-game winning streak.
Captain Demetriou is at the heart of that miserly back line but he’s also potent at the other end.
The County great scored 10 times last season – including a double against his old side at Gresty Road – and his goal at Bromley sparked Crewe’s winning run after a tough start to the current campaign.
The 34-year-old is sure to get another warm Rodney Parade welcome after making 300 appearances for the club before his exit in the summer of 2023.
So dramatic has the change in Newport been since then that Baker is one of just six County squad members that played alongside the stalwart (Nick Townsend, James Clarke, Kiban Rai, Aaron Wildig, Courtney Baker-Richardson are the others).
The Wales Under-21s international arrived from Stoke in January 2023 for his first loan spell with the Exiles and immediately tapped into Demetriou’s knowledge.
“It will be good to see him, when I first came here he helped me to settle in and get used to this level,” said the 21-year-old from Kent.
“He's one of the best defending scorers in the league and we all know what he can do. He has so much experience and has played a lot of games for a lot of years.
“I came in as a 19-year-old and he really helped me get used to the environment and how games are played in League Two.
“Playing next to him definitely helped me, and I had Clarkey there as well. To have them both there stood me in good stead.”
Baker may still be eligible for Wales Under-21s – and has a key qualifier against Czech Republic at Rodney Parade next month – but he’s one of the more experienced EFL campaigners in the squad.
He made the move permanently to County this summer after racking up 57 appearances over two loan spells.
The defender knows about the peaks and troughs of League Two, and is confident that he has joined a club on the up despite three defeats on the bounce.
“There will be tough spells in a season and you have to put them behind you to do well,” said Baker, who has played eight times in the current campaign and scored his first professional goal against Doncaster.
“I know the results might not show it but I think we are in a good place and can do well this season.”
“I am really excited for the rest of the season. We are a new team so it will take some time to glue together and results haven’t been the best recently but I do see us pushing forward.
“We know it hasn’t been good enough and that we can do better, so I am really excited for it.
“We've lost a few players due to injury and red cards but there is no loss in confidence.”
Saturday League Two fixtures: Harrogate v Bradford, Walsall v Colchester (both 12.30pm), Bromley v MK Dons, Carlisle v Grimsby, Cheltenham v Fleetwood, Doncaster v Chesterfield, Gillingham v Barrow, Morecambe v Notts County, Newport County v Crewe, Port Vale v Swindon (AFC Wimbledon v Accrington postponed).
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