NEWPORT County AFC had such a busy January transfer window it was perhaps inevitable that Deadline Day at Rodney Parade would be the complete opposite.

Boss Graham Westley had made 13 new additions to his squad and seen 10 players move in the other direction before the final day of the window began yesterday.

And there was no further business before the window closed at 11pm last night.

Only time will tell if Westley’s wheeling and dealing in January is enough to save the club from relegation back into non-League football.

The early signs look positive with two draws, against Colchester and Barnet, followed by a priceless three points in a 3-1 defeat of Hartlepool.

County might still be propping up League Two but they are now within touching distance of the sides just above them in the standings.

And a win on Saturday at Cheltenham will be massive in the Exiles’ bid to escape the dreaded drop.

Goals are vital if Westley’s men want to stay up and the manager has brought in six players with attacking instincts.

Aaron Williams and Ryan Bird netted their first County strikes on the weekend, Jaanai Gordon bagged a brace for the reserves yesterday, and Craig Reid has always known the way to goal.

Add to that Florent Bojaj and Swansea City winger Alex Samuel and there is plenty there for Westley to work with, not forgetting Marlon Jackson, Tom Meechan and Sean Rigg, who is now back from injury.

Getting midfielder Josh Sheehan’s loan extended until the end of the campaign was crucial, Mitchell Rose is a solid presence, and re-registering Michael Flynn has done a lot to boost morale, particularly among the fans.

The same could be said for David Pipe, back at the club on loan from Eastleigh, while Sid Nelson, Mark O’Brien and Mickey Demetriou are all now beginning to find their feet.

For the record, the players who left Rodney Parade this month were Jack Jebb, Josh O’Hanlon, Abdoulaye Meite, Dafydd Jones, Lewis Bamford, Ben Jones, Jon Parkin, Kyle Cameron, Rhys Healey and Jordan Green.

There were no successful approaches yesterday for transfer-listed Mark Randall or out of favour duo Ben Tozer and Jack Compton, who were both told they could leave the club.