On the three points…
" Any win is a good win, and I thought some of our football in the first half was good. They had a little spell but we got through that and in the second half we had a couple of chances to put the game to bed. There's no getting away from the fact that Braintree were trying to force the issue and grab that equaliser. I thought we defended a little bit too deep, but I would say that with the balls into the box, we were first to the large majority of them and defended well. The team were together which is important – they worked extremely hard for that victory. Taking everything into consideration, I have to say that I'm delighted with the three points. We want to play better than that second half. We've got to be a little bit braver defensively and not drop off too deep, which then helps the forwards and midfielders get tighter together, and can stop teams from coming onto us. I asked at Luton that they were all together. They put on a good performance and got a good result. And on Saturday that was another very good three points for us."
On injuries…
" The injury to Alan Goodall caused a bit of an issue – firstly, in terms of reshuffling the back-four. And it was the second substitution that we'd made and were thinking about changing the shape of the team, which I wasn't able to do thereafter. So things are going against us a little bit. It seems to be that if you're a defender at this football club you're suffering an injury. Alan felt the worse for wear after a clash of heads. He's not the biggest but he's good in the air. I asked him to do a job marking and he put his body on the line. He got a cut – I think from his nose – and was bleeding and just didn't feel well enough to continue. Other than that, Sam Hatton trained on Friday but didn't look well enough really to join in. Hopefully after a couple more days he may come back into contention. Craig Disley remains a doubt, and that's a difficult one because it's not really a case of treating him at the moment. It's not anything that obvious where we can say 'that's got a lot better or the swelling has gone down.' So we'll wait and see with that one. Defensively, more than anything, is where we seem to be getting headache after headache. Chris Doig was very hopeful he would be okay for Saturday but it wasn't quite right on Thursday. He's hopeful but we'll have to assess him first thing today."
On Scott Neilson…
" Scott was lively. I brought him off because of how the game was going. I just thought Joe (Colbeck) might offer a fresh pair of legs and take us up the pitch a little bit more. Scott has certainly been asking the question about not being in the team, and I said to him last week when we came off after Luton that it was in my mind, the possibility of playing him. We had a Reserve game last week so he got 90 minutes under his belt there. And he looked like he had a point to prove on Saturday. He was lively, he worked back and the first few things he did in the game were get a couple of blocks in. The crowd appreciate that and so do his team-mates and myself, as manager. That's all part and parcel of football. We know what he can do going the other way and he showed glimpses, without it quite happening. I'm pleased that's moved him a step closer to where he was last year for us. He'll have to continue to work hard but it was certainly a step in the right direction."
On Clayton McDonald…
" It was Clayton's best game for us, without a doubt. With a couple of his clearances, the fans almost gasped – but as a defender, if it's there to clear and you're not sure, I'd rather he put his foot through. Whether it goes high up into the sky or onto the roof, teams can't score from there. When it was there to play it, he played it because for such a big fellow he can play. He's not bad but I'd rather see those clearances if I'm honest. He won a lot of headers, stood his ground and, as I say, that's his best game so far in a Grimsby Town shirt."
On Ritchie Jones…
" Before kick-off we were hoping to have Ritchie available, who would have certainly been involved, either starting or on the bench, but we didn't get international clearance for him. There was a little bit of uncertainty there so we couldn't use him. Hopefully his clearance will come today. It's not a definite but I would obviously like to have him involved tomorrow night. Saturday would have been perfect for him. If he had been on the pitch he could have slotted in at right-back for me, or he could have brought a fresh energy and drive to us from the bench. It will be great to have Ritchie on board. He's signed on a month-to-month contract and we'll assess that. I've told him that's the way it is at the moment because of where we are, but it's with the hope that he comes in and impresses and we can then look to extend that. He brings competition to the midfield area and can also fill in at right-back. He's a good player – he played for our Reserves a couple of weeks back at Chesterfield, but then had the opportunity to go to Holland which didn't quite work out for him. As a result, he's back here and I look forward to working with him."
