AFC Telford's Dan Preston has nothing to prove, says boss Rob Smith

Preston is preparing for an early reunion at The Lamb where he played for the last two years after his first spell with the Bucks.

The 24-year-old Brummie binman has started his second stint with Telford in tremendous form and was man of the match in Tuesday's 0-0 draw at FC United of Manchester.

Preston was part of the National League North's best defence last season as Tamworth conceded just 45 goals to finish seventh and manager Rob Smith believes the no-nonsense stopper's form will be no surprise to the Lambs.

"I think he'll be up for it and he'll want to do well, but he's got nothing to prove to anyone," said Smith.

"He's producing the sort of performances Telford fans have seen from him before and that's what I expect from him really.

"What you see is what you get from 'Prezzo' – in all aspects of life – but he's been fantastic.

"He reads the game well. He's got a football brain, that's for certain."

Preston ended the game in Manchester wearing a changed shirt after his first one was left ripped in an incident where he, Darren Campion and Dale Tonge were booked after some argy-bargy.

Smith makes no apologies for the show of aggression.

"That's the way it is – we wanted to win the game and I expect that commitment from them," he said.

"I won't stop them getting involved in things like that and I was really pleased with the commitment, as I've been all the way through.

Smith has urged Telford to build on Tuesday's first point of the season by gaining their first win this weekend.

"It's an incentive for all of us because we want to get that first win as soon as we can," he said. "It's an artificial pitch which isn't going to be easy, they won on Tuesday night (1-0 at home to Worcester City), so it's going to be tough. But I'll be saying that every week this season.

"The main thing from Tuesday was to come away with something, which we did to give us something to build on."