SEAN Newton has warned Bromley they will face a more resilient York City side than the one that capitulated 3-0 in Kent four months ago.

On that day, the Minstermen lined up with a rookie strikeforce of Robbie McDaid and Jake Charles, who only had four senior goals to their names.

But, with Jon Parkin, Vadaine Oliver and Amari Morgan-Smith now leading the attack, City boast three marksmen with more than 280 career goals between them with one, two or all three of them on the scoresheet in ten of their team’s last 13 league matches.

Newton, along with Simon Heslop and Alex Whittle, is one of three players that started the Bromley debacle, who are expected to be in tonight’s return match and the 28-year-old utility man reasoned: “We’ve got nothing to fear against them if we perform as we have done during the last two games and, when you get beaten by a team like we did against them, you always want to put on a performance to make sure it doesn’t happen again.

“In that game, we had some great chances to score during the first 15 minutes but the lads up front were inexperienced so, when they missed one or two opportunities, you could see their heads drop a bit.

“Then, with the way it was going back in November, they got one chance and went in front and we fell apart. We’ve got a strong group now, though, who roll their sleeves up even more when the going gets tough and the three lads up front have been in the game a long time and scored goals for a long time.

“If they miss a chance, it doesn’t faze them and we know, if they get another, it will go in the back of the net.”

Another change Newton has witnessed at Bootham Crescent since his October arrival from North Wales is the transformation in home form.

The Minstermen have won the last five fixtures on their own soil, whilst it took Newton seven games to celebrate his first league triumph in North Yorkshire.

Now, rather than the supporters being the proverbial 12th man, Newton argues they are filling that role in an almost literal sense.

“The atmosphere was brilliant against Braintree on Saturday and, even when we didn’t start brightly, the fans were still getting us going,” he explained. “When we had corners to defend, they were screaming at us to make sure we stayed switched on, so they were like another player at times behind the goal.

“We need them and, as players and fans, we’ve gelled together brilliantly over the last couple of months. When I first signed, you could sense a bit of fear in the lads playing here but, as a new bunch, we weren’t part of the negativity and only feel positive playing at home.”

With the team knowing three points against Bromley in their game in hand is guaranteed to take them out of the relegation zone they have filled since November, Newton admitted it is an opportunity City cannot afford to go begging.

“We’re in a great position, because it’s in our own hands and we’re not relying on anybody else slipping up,” he pointed out. “The performances from the last two games will count for nothing, if we don’t take the points from this match but, if we do, it will send out a message to everybody else that we’re not going down.”

Newton also feels the swagger with which City finished their match against Braintree could serve the side well during their six-game run-in to the end of the campaign.

“The first 15 minutes were a bit cagey but, once big Parky scored his goal, we settled quite quickly and, while 2-0 is still a dodgy scoreline in football, we kept them reasonably quiet in the second half,” he declared. “After we got the third goal, we also showed what we can do with the ball and played with a lot of confidence, which we will need during the remaining games.”