As people are probably now aware, I have asked to go out on loan in order to get some games.

It has been a tough decision to make and one I may have been delaying on making.

I am delighted the team are doing well at the moment and fully accept the players deserve their place in the side and the manager has no reason to change them.

I have been at the club for a long time and have earnt my place in the past to be in the starting 11.

But I am at a time in my career where I need to be playing games.

I miss the buzz of playing and during the last few weeks I have become a lot more frustrated.

For me to make an impression on the manager, I need to be match-fit and have an impact on the game and that is not going to happen if I’m coming off the bench for five minutes.

I have had a good chat with the gaffer, who has been great in understanding my concerns.

Until something comes up, though, I will continue to train as professionally as I always have and, if called upon in games, will give it my all.

We picked up a disappointing draw against Bury last Saturday but unlike most teams that come to Priestfield they didn’t just sit back and defend.

They tried to attack us and in the second half, especially, probably looked the better side.

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That said, although it was not one of our best performances, we could and probably should have won the game in the last couple of minutes.

Cody, who has been superb over the last few months, missed a chance that he has been usually tucking away. It was just one of those frustrating afternoons where our play overall was not up to our usual standards but, putting things in perspective, it was another point toward our promotion target.

Although a win would have put us fifth and within touching distance of the automatic promotion spot, we are still in an excellent position. The game did have a couple of positives in that Curtis continued on from his goal at Crewe with another well-taken finish. It is good that other people are starting to chip in with a few goals now as that will take the pressure slightly off Cody and Bayo.

Defensively, I thought we were fairly solid with Matt Lawrence returning from injury which gave us that experience and I thought he was excellent alongside Garry Richards and deservedly picked up the man-of-the-match nomination.

A sign of a good side is when you gain partnerships across the team. Like Cody and Bayo, you can see Matt and Gaz already forming a good understanding with each other.

The downside to the game was not being able to hold on to the lead and conceding a sloppy goal. I felt for Nutsy after the game as he was disappointed that he couldn’t prevent the ball from crossing the line. After a initial half-stop from Jules, the ball just seemed to be that bit too far in front of John for him to hook it clear.

We travel to Shrewsbury this week and all know what can happen up there if you are not focused. That game a couple of years ago – when we lost 7-0 – was a nightmare for everyone. There are a few boys who were part of that day who will be more determined than ever not to let that happen again.

To be fair, we had our revenge at Wembley but unfortunately it’s hard to forget a result like that.

We beat them fairly comfortably earlier this season but we know it will be different on Saturday. It’s important we come back with at least a draw.