Phil Parkinson urged Altrincham fans to turn The J.Davidson Stadium into a “horrible” venue for visiting teams after the Robins added another point to their quest to close in on the play-off places in the National League.

Alex Newby salvaged a thoroughly-deserved 2-2 draw against Gateshead with an 86th-minute equaliser, after the Robins had led early on through a Tom Crawford penalty, but there was a missing ingredient, according to Parkinson, that could have made all the difference in such a tight encounter.

“There was some really good football played by both sides, but I just felt it was all a little bit flat,” said the Alty boss. “Our fans are amazing and were behind us again, but I want them to be more vocal and to make this a horrible place for teams to come to.

“I just thought we were a bit quiet against Gateshead, so that’s why I’m asking if we can turn our stadium into a really horrible venue for the opposition and make it really difficult for them.

“We have to do our part as well by playing really good football, but I thought we did that against a good Gateshead side. Our fans do spur us on, and that’s why the connection we have with them is so important, We are all in it together.”

With games coming thick and fast, Parkinson rotated his squad last Saturday and was pleased with the way they fought back from conceding two goals in quick succession near the end of the first half.

“We showed a lot of character to come back the way we did,” he said. “On territory and possession, it was a fair result, but I felt we had the better chances. I’m happy we are generating chances, because if we keep performing to our levels, we will start converting them.

“It would have been a really tough one to take if we hadn’t got that late equaliser, but I believe in our squad and the players who came in against Gateshead. There is more to come from us.”