Boss Adam Murray urges Mansfield Town on to next milestone

Pre-season, bookies were tipping the Stags to go down, so to go over the 50-point mark last weekend – which should all but guarantee safety – was significant in mid-February

“It was a good milestone for us, but it’s not an acceptance we’re there,” said Murray as he prepared his side for Saturday’s trip to Newport County.

“We are up there on merit and I know how good we can be. The group know how good we can be. Now we want to get 60 points as quick as we can.

“That’s our next target – how quickly can we get there? We’ve got some really tough games coming up but we’re ready for the fight.

“We are in a good vein of form, the boys are really confident at the minute and everyone’s putting a shift in.”

He continued: “When I get punched in the face I like punching people back, so I say to my players – whatever people put in front of you as an individual – get up and go again.

“As much as it sometimes hurts, you have to get up and sometimes you can’t see as you’ve been hit that hard. But you have to get up. We keep doing that as a team.

“When we do get smashed in the face we get up and punch back, not to prove people wrong but to prove us right which is a better feeling.

“I believe in myself as a manager. I believe in my coaches. I believe in all the staff. Everybody - the groundsman, the cleaners, the office staff - we’ve worked tirelessly this season to get where we are.

“Everyone has given everything they can. So for everyone to look up at us now and say ‘I didn’t expect that’ is pleasing.

“For us to go ‘ we knew we could do that is even more pleasing’, so keep punching us. We will roll with the punches and we’ll hit you twice as hard.”