Andy Todd hailed after his AFC Telford debut
AFC Telford United manager Liam Watson believes player-coach Andy Todd will be a crucial acquisition to his side on and off the pitch this season.
The 35-year-old midfielder made his competitive debut for the Bucks against Barnet on Saturday, after joining from Tamworth in the summer.
Mike Phenix scored a stoppage-time equaliser to salvage a point for the Conference Premier side, as their search for a first league win continues.
Watson said: "He's a winner. He's won the Conference twice as a player at Accrington and Mansfield and he's also coached at Mansfield.
"He came in here to coach and as time goes on you're thinking 'I've got someone who's been there, seen it, done it. Leg-wise we know he's fine'.
"I knew he wouldn't let me down and, if anything, he probably added to the team because in the first half they were right back at us again bombing on.
"And it's where we got murdered on Tuesday night at Gateshead so he's come in to the team and,to be honest, I think Sean Clancy has been feeling a bit leggy as well, so it was nice to give him a bit of a break."
Win-less Telford have picked up just three points from their first nine games and sit rock bottom of the table.
Watson, whose side has scored the first goal in each of their last four league games and failed to win any of them, believes his team must become harder to beat.
He said: "We just need to make sure that we stay in games. I've said time and time again a point at home and a point away in the Conference is a good point.
"People get obsessed about winning games and we have ourselves.
"We've been in situations where we've had a point and we're trying to win a game, or we've had a time when we were 2-1 down like last week against Dover in a game where we should never get beaten.
"You go kamikaze to try and get an equaliser and you get picked off and come away with a 4-1 which is not a true reflection of the game. So we have got to be a little bit cuter – streetwise."
