ALAN Goodall's Conference-winning experience meant he ticked all the right boxes for Grimsby Town's joint bosses.
The 31-year-old was the Mariners' only piece of business on transfer deadline day, joining on an initial one-month loan deal to bolster Rob Scott and Paul Hurst's depleted defensive ranks.
Injuries to Clayton McDonald and Sam Hatton – and Aswad Thomas' three-match suspension – forced the duo to look for reinforcements before the window closed.
But after casting their eye over young – and unproven – talent, Hurst says they plumped for an 'older head' who has already tasted Conference title glory, with parent club Fleetwood in 2011/12.
"Alan's a player that we've been aware of and, with him finding himself out of the Fleetwood team at the moment, it made sense to bring him in," he told the Telegraph.
"There are a lot of young, unproven players out there, but at the moment, given where we are and what we need, Alan ticked a lot more boxes for us and we were pleased that he agreed to come.
"He's experienced and he's won promotion from the Conference with Fleetwood.
"He's then gone on and played quite a few games for them in League Two.
"We've brought him in predominately as a left back as cover for Aswad, while he's suspended, but he can also play at left centre back.
"It's that experience, and bit of know-how, that hopefully he'll bring to us and help the rest of the defenders by being a bit of a calming influence."
As well as Fleetwood, Goodall played over 100 games for Rochdale and also enjoyed spells at Chesterfield, Newport and Luton.
And Hurst said the man from Birkenhead has the ideal opportunity to make his Town bow in the televised game against the Hatters on Saturday.
He added that if the full-back goes on to impress, there could be scope for a longer stay in Cleethorpes, citing the success of his Cod Army team-mate Nathan Pond.
"There's always an opportunity for him to prove himself and stay longer," he said.
"When we brought Pondy in, it was only initially on a short-term deal but then the fact of how well he did meant that it would have been foolish not to try and extend it, which we did.
"The same goes for Alan – if he comes in and does well, we'll have to look at the situation.
"He's keen to come and play, which is important and the League won't hold any surprises for him – he knows all about it."
He added: "He'll train with us for the first time today and so we'll look to introduce him to the lads.
"We're talking about an experienced player, and I don't think there'll be any issues with him settling in.
"It's a good first game for him to go into on Saturday with it being on TV and against one of his former clubs so I'm sure he'll be keen to impress."
