League will be tougher – Flynn
BOSS Michael Flynn has warned that Newport County could enjoy a better season than last year and still finish lower in the table due to what he sees as the increase in quality in League Two this time out.
County upset the odds to finish seventh in May and were only denied promotion after Mark O’Brien was sent off in the play-off final at Wembley and Tranmere Rovers sealed victory deep into extra-time.
Flynn believes that he has assembled a better squad for the new campaign but he’s also convinced that it will be much tougher to claim a playoff spot than it was last season.
“I think our squad has improved,” said the Exiles boss.
“We’ll find out if the team has improved over the next few weeks, but the league has improved drastically.
“The aim is to improve year on year but we could have a better season and not quite finish as high as we did last season because I think the league is a lot stronger this year.
“You’ve got some really big clubs who have come down – Bradford, Plymouth, Walsall and Scunthorpe will all be looking to get straight back up to be fair.
“Then you’ve got Mansfield, who will have improved, and I think Northampton will be right up there.
Mansfield, the title favourites with many bookmakers, are the visitors to Rodney Parade tomorrow afternoon and County also face Plymouth Argyle, Walsall and Forest Green Rovers this month and Northampton Town on September 14.
“It’s going to be a really tough game against Mansfield,” added Flynn.
“They’re one of the favourites to go up and it will give us a good benchmark to see where we are.
“It’s a tough start. It’s going to be a tough six weeks but if we come out of it with a few wins we can hopefully then kick on.
“Realistically, there are 16 or 17 teams who will be looking for a topseven finish,” he added.
“It is about managing expectations. I have had a bit of an improvement on my budget but it’s still nowhere near any of the top 10.”