Catlin: New faces have given Borough a boost

And the Privett Park boss admits he does not care how his side survive relegation this season.

Borough travel to Kettering Town in the Southern League premier division on Saturday (3pm) with confidence riding high.

Gosport delivered their first league victory this term against Dunstable Town last weekend – one day after they had their transfer embargo lifted.

Jamie Thompson and Lee Molyneaux made key contributions in the success and have helped lift the spirit at Privett Park.

Nevertheless, Borough are still rooted to the bottom of the division and are six points from safety.

Catlin revealed their is a new sense of belief around his squad ahead of the trip of fifth-placed Kettering.

He is adamant points rather than performances are his priority.

‘This game is a much tougher ask, but we must look to try and string a few results together,’ said Catlin.

‘Kettering are one of the top sides, lively up front and strong at home.

‘It will be a totally different kind of test to Dunstable.

‘Getting our first win, however, has lifted the mood in the camp.

‘There is now a greater belief that we can go out there and win games.

‘I have to install the belief we can get out of the situation we are in.

‘For us, it is Project Survival and it is not important how we do it.

‘Hopefully, we can remain strong defensively and grind something out.

‘The players showed good resilience against Dunstable because there was a lot of pressure on them.

‘For the first time they were in a situation where they were expected to win.

‘That weighed on them in the second half when we didn’t play particularly well.

‘But we held on to our lead and restricted them to just long-range shots.’

Borough feel they stand more of a chance now the transfer embargo has been lifted.

Catlin wasted no time to sign experienced defender Molyneuax from the Hawks on loan and striker Thompson from Hamble Club.

Both made a big difference against Dunstable.

The former gave Gosport’s defence the solidity it had been missing, while Thompson netted the all-important goal.

Both will have key roles to play if Borough are to get anything at Kettering – and avoid the drop.

Catlin added: ‘The new players coming in have given us a big boost.

‘For the first time this season I can select players on form and not just on who is available.

‘The key at Kettering is going to be about having the belief we can get a result.

‘We have to go there and be competitive.

‘Our success criteria this season is staying in this league.

‘At the moment we are focusing on the positives and want to try tokeep the momentum moving forward.’