OLDHAM Athletic manager Dino Maamria is certain that Newport County AFC and Michael Flynn will bounce back from Saturday’s 5-0 battering at Boundary Park.

Exiles boss Flynn admitted after the match that he is fighting to keep his job following a run of just four wins in 21 matches in League Two since October.

But Maamria, who worked on the coaching team with Flynn at Rodney Parade when he was assistant to Graham Westley in the 2016-2017 campaign, is backing the man he calls his “good friend” to turn things around.

“I think knowing their players, how they line up and what they do and their strengths and weaknesses always helps,” said the Tunisian, who also led the Latics to a 1-0 win in Newport in November.

“I know Flynny very well and I’ve got great admiration for the work that he’s doing at Newport County.

“He has certainly taken them on leaps and bounds since our time together three years ago.

“I very much enjoyed working there and I always had a good rapport with everyone connected with the club.

“Unfortunately for them this season, their form has been massively affected with injuries,” added Maamria.

“They’ve been unfortunate and I told him after the match ‘don’t take it too hard’ because they started the season very well.

“Then they had a few injuries and I’ve got experience of that myself at Stevenage – injuries to key players can mean that your season starts going the other way.

“Having said that, they were a whisker away from appearing at Wembley in the final [of the Leasing.com Trophy].

“Newport are a good team and they have a good manager. I’m sure they’ll bounce back.”

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Two-goal hero Danny Rowe (above with Maamria) hopes the result will be a catalyst for Oldham to start climbing the League Two table.

They moved up to 17th in the table on Saturday but could yet face a 12-point deduction if they go into administration following last Friday’s winding-up petition for unpaid taxes.

“It's a good scoreline against a decent team and was a good performance for us,” said Rowe.

“It just helps scoring as you grow with confidence and grow into the game.

“We were on top from the start but after we scored, we were well on top of the game and we were just going to score more and more.

“We've got a really good team. We'll be the first to admit we've been a bit hit and miss at times.

“Some games here at Boundary Park we've absolutely battered teams and then had poor results elsewhere, so it's slightly disappointing in that respect but it's all about getting that consistency now the new faces have settled in and are playing together more.

“I think it'll all come together once we start doing that.”

Despite concerns over the winding-up petition, Maamria was delighted with the way his players focused on the task in hand on Saturday.

“It’s been a difficult week,” he said. “I had to address the players before the game. I spoke to all of them in a group message and I thought the players’ application was second to none.

“I thought they showed a lot of desire, a lot of togetherness and we showed what we’re all about as a team and as a club.”

Read more: Newport County boss Michael Flynn questions players' character after Oldham Athletic drubbing