SCOTT Neilson believes the Grimsby Town squad has all the qualities needed to mount a promotion-winning season – and he should know.
The 25-year-old was part of the Crawley Town side that won back-to-back promotions, firstly from the Blue Square Bet Premier and then again from League Two last season.
The winger, who is currently in the middle of a three-month loan spell from the Red Devils, says he has been impressed with the quality of Town's squad.
And he believes that everything is in place for them to secure a Football League return this season.
Speaking ahead of this afternoon's game at AFC Telford (3pm), he said: "There are definite similarities between the squad that I was in at Crawley and this Grimsby Town team – there isn't a lot of difference in terms of quality.
"I think any team that is going to challenge for promotion needs a strong team spirit, which we've definitely got here.
"When we got promotion at Crawley it was all about going to the less fashionable grounds and grinding out results, whether that was digging out three points or just one – we seem to be doing that well here.
"It's a cliché but it really is about taking each game as it comes and those wins, and draws will all add up over the course of the season.
"You can't win every single game, and when you lose one, you can't be thinking it's the end of the world – that's not what it's about.
"You've got to forget about those bad results that you get and keep building on it because it's a long season."
Crawley's Conference winning campaign saw Steve Evans' men top the table with 105 points – having lost at home to the Mariners on the opening day of the season.
"In that season with Crawley, questions were being asked of us all the time and it's about how you answer them," added Neilson.
"We didn't lose a lot of games in that season and when we did, we used it as a wake-up call and that's what the gaffers here are doing.
"If you lose two or three on the bounce, you start thinking 'we might let this slip' but if you react properly then you keep yourself up there.
"At Town, all we've got to do is to stick together and cut out any silly mistakes and we'll be up there.
"We need to be clinical and dominate games when we can and really get on top of teams.
"If you go to the bottom-half teams and dig out wins then the league will take care of itself, you don't necessarily have to go to the bigger teams and win every game.
"If we do that there's no reason why we can't go straight up."
With his 92-day loan deal set to expire in December, Neilson admits his situation is 'open-ended' but hinted that he wouldn't be against extending his stay at Blundell Park.
He added: "I do get on with everyone and the lads, managers and the fans have been great and made me feel welcome. I feel like I've fitted in nicely.
"I'm not too sure about my situation; it's open-ended.
"I haven't heard from Crawley at all since I got here, so from my point of view it's about playing well here, keeping in touch with the gaffer and see what comes of it.
"If the team is still having a good run and I'm enjoying it like I am, then why go back to somewhere where you're not playing and be sat on the bench every week?
"If that was the case, come Christmas time when my deal comes to an end it would be a no-brainer to stay longer.
"It could be my chance to be part of another promotion push and I wouldn't want to pass that opportunity up."
