Justin Edinburgh pleased with loan signing Tom Naylor
Last updated on .From the section Newport
New loan signing Tom Naylor is in line for a debut in Newport County's derby match with Bristol Rovers on Saturday.
Derby County defender Naylor, 22, has been drafted in until January as cover for the injured Byron Anthony.
"He's come straight into the squad and into contention for a starting place on Saturday, so I'm delighted with that," said manager Justin Edinburgh.
Anthony suffered a broken leg in Newport's 3-1 Capital One Cup win over Brighton on 6 August.
Edinburgh is relieved to have secured Naylor's loan deal, especially with his defensive resources stretched Anthony's injury.
"We worked tirelessly to try and get it through before last weekend, but unfortunately that wasn't the case," he said.
"But we managed to get him through the door on Monday and he settled into the group fantastically."
Naylor played for Newport against Cardiff City on Tuesday in a match played behind closed doors, and impressed former Tottenham defender Edinburgh.
"He's a good acquisition for the squad and we're delighted to have him here for the six months, if not longer," he added.
Newport's meeting with Bristol Rovers at Rodney Parade will be the first time the traditional rivals have met since 1987.
County are looking to bounce back after their 3-1 defeat at Northampton.
And amid the build-up to a Severn-side derby that has been so long in the waiting, Edinburgh expects fans to keep their passions under control.
He said: "It's a great one for the players to try and get back on track.
"There's a lot that's been spoken about there's a buzz around the city and around the stadium that's reflected in the players training again it's been excellent throughout the week and we're looking forward to it immensely.
"I think they're a fantastic crowd and fantastic fans and I've been down here for two years now and there's never been any incidents or any trouble.
"You know we played Wrexham in the final at Wembley that went off fine and there's no more rivalry there I don't think in terms of two Welsh teams striving to get league status.
"I expect it to be passionate, I expect our crowd to be intimidating but I do expect it to go without any problems.
"These are big games but my players are used to playing in big games.
"We played the semi-final against Grimsby that was a great occasion, great atmosphere and I expect the same on Saturday.
"But you know there are players that have played in derbies before and they've played in big occasions so I expect nothing less than for the players to deal with the situation and make sure they concentrate solely on their performance."
You can listen to live commentary of this game on BBC Radio Wales AM & Digital from 15:00 BST on Saturday, 17 August.
