MANAGER Martin Foyle wants to use the point gained at Braintree Town as a catalyst to keeping Hereford United in the Skrill Premier.

Saturday's 1-1 draw in Essex ended a run of five consecutive defeats for the Bulls that has plunged them into the relegation picture.

Although they have a seven-point cushion above the bottom four, they are far from safe with 11 games still to play this season.

The first of those is at Grimsby Town tonight (7.45pm), who need the points to further their claim for a play-off place.

Foyle believes the players have the desire to drag Hereford to safety and wants them to prove it at Blundell Park.

"I was delighted with the point at Braintree but it was just a start," he said. "But what we did down there showed that the players are up for it.

"It was important to stop the rot ahead of a very difficult game at Grimsby.

"We are all in this together and there are no hiding places – I’ve been in a relegation battle once and didn’t like it and this is the first time I have been down there as a manager and I have found it difficult because there are so many things going on.

"It’s a great learning curve but it’s all about the players, not about me or the board. It’s about the players and whether they are committed."

With such a quick turnaround from the weekend, Foyle is likely to name the same 16 that travelled to Cressing Road on Saturday.

Striker Michael Rankine failed to recover from a hamstring problem in time and would not be expected to be involved tonight.

Centre-half Rod McDonald returned from illness against Braintree and could line up opposite his brother Clayton, who plays for the Mariners.

Ninth-placed Grimsby are smarting from a 1-1 draw at Macclesfield on Saturday when they conceded an equalising injury-time penalty.