Webb glad he got tough

King's Lynn boss Keith Webb admitted yesterday his get tough policy had helped trigger the club's recent upsurge.

King's Lynn boss Keith Webb admitted yesterday his get tough policy had helped trigger the club's recent upsurge.

Lynn moved into second spot in the Southern League, Premier Division standings - ahead of major title rivals Team Bath's scheduled trip to Tiverton last night - with a solid win at Banbury.

Webb's side also booked a glamour FA Trophy first round trip to Cambridge United at the weekend after dumping out Conference South leaders Eastbourne Borough.

The Linnets' chief charts the fallout from lowly Corby's win at The Walks earlier this month as a key turning point.

“The response since the Corby game has been first rate,” he said. “We laid it on the line before the next match (at Cirencester) and to be fair they have done superbly. We told them if they couldn't handle the pressure of playing for King's Lynn they were no good to us and we'd get other people in.

“I don't want them to think we've now turned a corner. We'll still be pushing them hard and we stressed that again before Banbury.”

Lynn's depleted squad dug in to record a rare league win over the Puritans at their ramshackle Spencer Stadium.

“It was a battle and we had to show another side to our game,” said Webb. “After the euphoria of beating Eastbourne it would've been easy to get carried away. Sometimes in the past we might have struggled at those sorts of places. We had to battle and compete on a difficult pitch and emerged worthy winners. With their direct style of play I knew we'd be under pressure and they'd create some chances.

“It wasn't an easy situation but we coped. Greg Lake was solid again and Danny Buhlemann came on down the right of midfield and was absolutely superb. He had an outstanding game.”

Webb is confident he can keep his four-pronged strike force happy as the competition hots up for places. John Turner, Danny Bloomfield and Jack Defty have all fired during the club's four-match winning run.

“The way we are playing and scoring goals those lads out of the side don't have any comeback,” said Webb. “I expect them to work hard in training and prove they want to be involved. The problem only comes when the team isn't doing well - then maybe they do have a comeback.”

Michael Frew (foot) is a major fresh injury doubt for Merthyr's league visit this weekend. Defender Ben Chapman (back) is also struggling while Craig Fleming (ankle) is poised to see a specialist tomorrow over the extent of his injury.