RYAN McGivern reckons he has joined a squad in an upbeat frame of mind about their promotion prospects as new manager Phil Brown makes his presence felt at the Energy Check County Ground.

Free agent Northern Irish international McGivern arrived last Thursday as Brown beefed up his defensive options, the new manager immediately injecting impetus - as shown in Saturday’s 3-1 win at Cambridge United, which came seven days after the 3-0 home defeat by Cheltenham Town had dropped them out of the League Two play-off spots.

“I was in for two days before the Cheltenham game when Matt (Taylor) was in charge and everyone’s spirits were sky high,’’ said McGivern, who featured as a second-half substitute at the weekend.

“You wouldn’t expect it any other way as we were still in the play-offs at the time and the (Cheltenham) defeat, it is one defeat, it happens in football.

“The manager has come in (Brown) and Thursday was a bubbly, lively session. The manager got his points across and the team seem a good bunch and everyone seems in good spirits and fully focussed on the 10 games we have.

“It is a very, very good squad for a League Two squad. It has to be up there with the best of them.

“We are just sitting outside the play-offs at the moment but with the players that are in the squad, there is no reason why we can’t be pushing and hoping for promotion at the end of the season.’’

Brown has been promoted twice before and managed at the top level domestically and McGivern, a former teammate of current Town skipper Marc Richards at Northampton Town, added: “He gains that respect straight away from the career he has had as a manager.

“You have to listen if you want to learn as a player so if someone of the manager’s stature comes in to listen and learn from hopefully it can steer us in the right direction.

“I have been at clubs before that we at the bottom end of the league and that is pressure as well. There is pressure to get promoted but it’s a better pressure than being towards the bottom of the league.

“The manager wants us to go and express ourselves but if we can shore  things up at the back and with the strikers we have got, we have a massive goal threat at this level. Hopefully we will be able to get enough wins on the board and get ourselves over the line.’’