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" It was brilliant today, it was a really good exercise for us. It was a training game that was at Newcastle's request through Chris Hughton, they had five or six first-team players that they needed to get 90 minutes. We are obviously struggling for training facilities anyway with the weather that we have had and our training ground was that wet that we took the game on and used it as a training exercise.
" Most of the first-team squad played part of the game and some of the younger players and fringe players played their part. So it has been a terrific afternoon and we are just again trying to build our bridges with Newcastle and they were brilliant. They put all the lads up and they fed them afterwards which was a terrific gesture. We sat and had lunch with Chris Hughton and Joe Kinnear and talked about our troubles and strifes and theirs as well, and it was a really good afternoon's work I think.
" Obviously Tim Krul's name was mentioned but if you think that we have got problems and that we have issues then you want to sit and listen to them talk for ages. They have got a lot of problems, the same problems as us but magnified because of the intensity and the finance involved in the Premier League.
" So they have an issue surrounding a couple of the goalkeepers there and if there is movement out with one of them, or even both of them, then obviously Tim's situation is different. So they can't really commit to anything at the moment, so we are playing a waiting game to see what happens at Newcastle with Tim. We are in their hands and we respect that and we will work behind them and hopefully get it sorted by the end of the week. "
" I think that obviously there is interest in Shay (Given), he is a top class keeper, there is interest in Steve Harper who is another top class keeper. So what they are waiting to see is if something does materialise, if it does then we have problems, if it doesn't then they will be kind enough to let Tim stay with us a little bit longer. We are working behind them at the minute though and we have to respect that, their situation is a massive proportion to them and they need to get it sorted out.
" We are close on one of the trialists, and we are going to give the other one a bit longer. They have impressed actually, Gavin (Rothery) played very well last night, Michael Burns was terrific at Sheffield United and he looked a very good player. So hopefully by the end of the week we will make a decision on one, we want to give the other one a little bit longer so that will come out around and about the weekend as well.
" Michael (Bridges) was back on the grass today doing some light work, so we will assess his injury on Thursday and have a look at him to see how he is fitness-wise and see how he is in terms of the state of the injury. Jeff (Smith) I think that probably the weekend is going to come too soon for him, it is a very short period to get over a groin injury is seven days, so we will have a look at them on Thursday but we are hopeful rather than optimistic.
" It is down to the players and the staff how far we can go now in continuing the improvement. We are not getting carried away with this, I certainly won't get carried away with what is going on. I am now starting to see what I believed all along that we are a team with a very good squad. A good group of players, honest players, determined players and we are starting to show now some signs that we are back and at it. "
" So how far we can go, you know what it is like when you have a good run, it is just the same as a bad run, if you can just get a bit of luck and a bit of momentum along the way. If we can go through seven or eight games from now unbeaten and picking up some wins then we are pushing off the heels of the leaders rather than looking over our shoulder.
" So if we can do that then it will give us a real clear picture of how far up the table we can go. What is good though is that I think that the future at last looks a little bit more secure and the players are again showing what they are capable of, and I am a lot more optimistic than I was a few weeks ago.
" I think that the supporters need to know about my situation on Danny Graham. My situation is with Danny that I have told him that I don't want him to go, I have told him that if an offer comes in that is anywhere near our valuation then we have to let him know and we have to let him talk to the club. We won't stand in his way but the offer would have to be a ridiculous amount of money because Danny is such an important player for us in terms of his goalscoring.
" He knows what I think of him, I think what he thinks of us is similar so we are optimistic and hopeful that we can keep Danny and those bids, we won't encourage them but they might come in and there is nothing that you can do to stop that. We have not made an enquiry about Warren Feeney and we have not had him watched. Without being disrespectful to Warren he is not a player that has come up on our radar, so newspaper reports are newspaper reports. "
" It is going to be a testing time for the squad with the games in the next few weeks but they have got a lot of resolve. It is good when you have got games when you are doing well and you have got a run of results behind you. If we had been losing games now then people might be fearful of what is ahead of us but we are not fearful. We are going to get on with it, we look forward to it with anticipation and hope that we can put that run together and that by the end of the three weeks you never know where we might be in this table.
" We are really looking forward to it though, the hard work doesn't frighten anybody at this club now and you have seen that from the way that they have performed over the last few weeks. So we are going to have a right go at it and maybe we will have to utilise a little bit more of the squad, but that is part of the game and we can come out of this period unscathed and still improving.
" I think that what the supporters have seen on Saturday is honesty and to be honest we only talked about winning the game at half-time because we didn't think that our first-half performance was really disappointing. It was just that MK Dons got their breaks in front of goal and made the most of their chances.
" We didn't do a great deal wrong but we go in 2-0 down, but the support that we get from the supporters is radical. I am a big advocate of that, I have shouted loudly a lot of times that they play a big part. The reception that you get when you are going off, thinking that the supporters think that we can get back into it, we have got to believe that we can get back into it.
" It is never going to be easy 2-0 down against a side like MK Dons but we have managed to turn it around, and as a team and as a group, and that includes the supporters, we made it. I could tell by the excitement of your commentary there that you were as excited as all of the supporters and all of the back-room staff and all of the players. So everybody enjoyed the victory and it is one that we would like to see more of. "