Town boss wants a 'team of Ian Blacks'

The former Glasgow Rangers man has impressed so far in his four Town outings and returns from the hamstring niggle that saw him miss last weekend's win over Bury.

And the Scottish midfielder has already made a big impact on his new team-mates at the Greenhous Meadow.

The Town boss said: "I think the word we use is he barks at people if he doesn't get the desired performances out of people he's playing with.

"He'll have a little chip at people and he's a good organiser. But he'll have a little chip at them in the right way, he knows how to speak to people which is important.

"They know why he's doing it because Ian Black knows they can do better. I wish I had 11 of them like that, I really do – I'd fill the place with them.

"Some players need people like that in the team to get them going. "We at the minute have a few of them and we're certainly happy to have him."

Black was out-of-contract at Ibrox and only had a short stint at Berwick Rangers during pre-season.

In three of the four games the former Scotland international has played, Town have gone on to lose after he has been substituted.

They've, conceding twice against Fleetwood and Scunthorpe and the winner to Doncaster.

But after recovering from a slight lay-off, he is ready to do battle as Town travel to Vale Park in League One this afternoon.

Mellon added: "He brings a big smile to my face, he's such a battler.

"He's come in after several months of not doing anything, but he's one of those guys who you'd rather have him in your team than against you.

"He's a great little guy. He loves his football, he's always smiling and he trains really well every day.

"He's a good pro that demands high standards from the players around him, which is brilliant for me because I don't have to keep doing it.

"He wants to win and it affects him if he loses, and he doesn't understand why other people wouldn't feel the same.

"So he's brilliant to have around and everyone loves having him here. He's doing well at the minute.

"He'd agree he's only going to get even better so that's great news. He's definitely got the desire to want to get better and he wants to do well for us, so I love having him here.