DAVID Pratt says he is far happier now he is not being asked to play on his own in attack.

Basingstoke Town began the season with Pratt operating as a lone striker in a 4-5-1 formation – but the 23-year-old former Chippenham man admits that this did not suit his game.

“I do not really enjoy playing up front on my own and I think we look better when we play 4-4-2,” he said. “It is hard to get the ball under control and bring other people in when you are alone up there, which is a big part of my game.”

Pratt has got his wish in recent games, with manager Frank Gray reverting to 4-4-2 – and Town have overcome a somewhat slow start to the season by winning their last four games.

“It was always going to take time for everyone to gell,” Pratt added. “There were a lot of new faces but we were not playing badly, we just could not score goals.

“Now we are starting to score goals from all over the pitch. That is a big difference and hopefully we can go on a good run now.”

Pratt’s high work-rate has made him a fan’s favourite at the Camrose. He is a constant pest to defenders, giving them little or no time on the ball, and never stops running.

“I would probably score more goals if I was just lazy and stayed in the middle – but that is not what I am about,” he said. “Working hard is my game.

“I think I am playing pretty well. I have not scored as many goals as I would have liked but my all-round performances have been good, in terms of winning my headers and bringing other people into play.”

Pratt opened the scoring as Basingstoke cruised to a 4-0 FA Cup victory over Didcot last weekend and is hoping that they can take some of the confidence gained from that win into Saturday’s home game against league leaders Bromley.

“It was good to get a few goals and hopefully we can take that confidence through to the game against Bromley,” he said.

“Bromley have had a great start but we are gaining in confidence the more we play together and just have to go for it.

“We will all need to work hard but we will be at home and looking to win. We want to make the Camrose a fortress and hopefully more people will come to watch us if we can do that.”