The 1-1 draw at Morecambe last Saturday sounded like a battle. The two sides’ position in the league tells you what kind of game it was. It would have been nice to win but at least we kept that five-point gap between us and the bottom.

Not for the first time this season, we conceded straight after scoring. I always used to say, when you score you’re at your most vulnerable. You’re on a high, patting each other on the back. We’ve worked hard to get the lead. But the attitude in defending it hasn’t been good enough.

We saw that the previous Saturday at Forest Green, and in other matches. Chris Beech will know this and he’ll be drilling into them the importance of concentration.

Friends at the Morecambe game said Jarrad Branthwaite didn’t look comfortable being played in midfield. In the FA Cup replay against Forest Green on Tuesday night he was back to his best.

Let’s not forget he’s only 17. He’s way ahead of his years. Steven Pressley talked about green shoots. Branthwaite is like a daffodil! He’s ready to flower. You can see why clubs are going to queue up for him.

For the first half hour on Tuesday night I thought it was going to be the same as the league game against Forest Green with them having about 70 per cent possession.

But towards the end of the first half we came into it, scored what turned out to be the winner and could have gone two up.

It wasn’t a great second half. But we battled well. Byron Webster looked a different player. It was a vast improvement on some of his previous performances.

You might be struggling. But one performance can give you that bit of confidence. That’s what he’s needed. We know he’s played at a higher level and that performance shows you what he’s capable of. I’m pleased for him. He’s been taking stick, some of it justified. Aaron Hayden has done well since he came into the side. As well as scoring the winner on Tuesday, he battled well. Hopefully, like with Byron Webster, that game will be a confidence booster.

If you look at the way we’ve been struggling this season, the damage was done in the summer, signing players too late. You should have 90 per cent of your squad in place before pre-season. Instead we waited and ended up with lads who had very little experience. What you save in signing players late, you lose on the gate because crowds slump with bad results. It’s a false economy.

We get £54,000 for reaching the FA Cup third round, and a share of the gate receipts from the third round match at Cardiff. That should add up to a six-figure sum. Hopefully, a good percentage of that will go to the playing budget.

Grimsby at home tomorrow is another six-pointer. We know if we win we’ll go above them. We haven’t won a lot of games, although we’re unbeaten in four now. But Grimsby haven’t won in 11. It’s the ideal opportunity to back up the FA Cup win. Hit them early from the first whistle. Take the initiative.

People have been talking about whether Macclesfield will go bust, taking away the relegation place. Or they might get a points deduction for postponing their game against Crewe. I don’t want to depend on another team’s struggles. We want to put our own house in order.

n Interview: Roger Lytollis