Newport County striker relishing Carabao Cup test at Gillingham

County travel to Priestfield Stadium for the EFL Cup first-round tie on the back of two draws in their opening league games – 2-2 at home to Mansfield Town last week and 0-0 at Cambridge United on Saturday.

Manager Michael Flynn is ready to rest several key men ahead of the visit of table-topping Plymouth to Rodney Parade, but Matt is keen to keep his place up front.

“I’ll be ready, if selected,” said the 29-year-old. “It’s up to the gaffer who he selects, but we’ll be going there to try to win the game.

“The cups have been great for us and this is a competition that we can gain momentum in and build relationships with different players.”

One such player, who could feature tonight, is summer signing Tristan Abrahams and Matt has been impressed by his fellow front man.

“It’s a new partnership and I thought he made a good impact when he came on, he’s a good player,” he said.

“He probably needs a few more minutes because he came into it a little bit late in pre-season, but I’m excited about what he can do alongside me and Podge [Padraig Amond].”

Reflecting on the stalemate at Cambridge, which came after a series of off-the-field mishaps, Matt felt it was a positive result.

“The preparations weren’t ideal, we’ll be honest about that," he said.

"But the way the lads are, we never make any excuses.

“We always give it our best and that’s what we did and it makes it even better to come away with a result.

“I think it was definitely a point gained.

"The conditions were tough and I don’t think either team really did enough to win the game so a point each was probably a fair result.

“The wind made it quite difficult and it probably wasn’t a great one for the spectators but it’s another point on the board and we’re still unbeaten.

“We’ll be looking to gain some momentum now and hopefully get the first three points on the board as quick as possible.”