Defender Ryan Dickson has backed interim manager Dean Saunders to make his role at Crawley permanent.

Saunders has kept Reds’ hopes of avoiding relegation alive since taking over from John Gregory at the end of December.

Chief executive Michael Dunford originally said that Gregory would return to his position in the summer if he recovered sufficiently from the major heart surgery with Saunders stepping aside.

But the club have since hinted that Gregory may decide not to come back and if that happens Dickson believes Saunders should be given the opportunity to build on the encouraging impact he has made at the Checkatrade.com Stadium.

Reds failed to win in their last ten games of Gregory's reign but have improved slightly under Saunders and go into today's clash with fellow strugglers Colchester United just three points adrift of safety.

Dickson said: “I really liked the manager before (Gregory) as both a person and a manager but things seem to have a way of changing when you change the manager. It has not necessarily been better but it has been different.

“I think he (Saunders) has instilled a work ethic in all the players where maybe it was in twos or threes before. He has simplified things and we now have a way of playing that utilises our strengths.

“I think he would be good for the football club if he stayed on but everyone's focus at the moment is trying to stay in this division. Only once we have achieved that can the people who make these decisions begin to plan ahead.”