Mark Yates has revealed Crawley’s search for new talent is an on-going process.

But the Reds boss is not really thinking about the loan window closing next week as he prepares for today’s visit of Bristol Rovers to the Checkatrade.com Stadium.

Yates spent the early part of this week on a scouting mission.

A deal to sign former Cambridge United and Newport winger Robbie Willmott on loan until January fell through on Thursday.

But neither of those two points should suggest to Crawley fans that big changes are ahead.

Yates is pleased with the progress his side have made in recent weeks but, like any manager, is always looking to improve the squad at his disposal.

He revealed prior to the collapse of the loan deal for Willmott – due to Football League loan regulations concerning the fact he is currently playing for National League south side Ebbsfleet – that he had little intention of signing another player prior to the loan window closing next Thursday.

Whether that changes now remains to be seen. Likewise, should midfielder Conor Henderson be offered a deal at Inverness, where he has been on trial this week, that might free up funds within the squad.

Such ‘ifs’ and ‘buts’ are part and parcel of the life of a football manager who is always planning for the future but hoping he achieves results in the present to ensure there is a future.

Yates said: “You are in ‘the now’ but you are also planning for next week’s loan deadline, then planning for what you might want to do in January with the players we have either got here at the moment on loan or others, and you are always looking ahead.

“But you have to concentrate on now and my thoughts at the moment are on beating a decent Bristol Rovers team. The rest of it will take care of itself.

“Things are always going on in the background between me, Michael (Dunford, chief executive) and Jimmy (Dack, assistant) but I don’t see anything happening next week and hopefully we will have a settled group for the next six weeks of the year.

“Jimmy has had the players for a couple of days this week. I have been watching games back up in the Midlands and up north, having a look at a few players I want to keep an eye on.”

Crawley have lost just one of their last six games in League Two – a sequence which includes three wins on the trot at home in the league.

It took Crawley until mid-October to register a home victory this season but they are now looking a formidable force on their own turf.

Asked about turning around the home form, Yates said: “We needed to. You want to enthuse your home support and we didn’t do that at the start of the season for whatever reason.

“We have started to know what it takes to win at home, what it takes to get the crowd excited.

“Even our defeat to Luton in the FA Cup for me was our best performance of the season.”

Apart from longer-term injury victims Lanre Oyebanjo and Joe McNerney, Crawley will have a full squad to choose from today.

Centre-back Jon Ashton went off injured with a whack to a cheekbone in the 2-2 draw at Exeter City last Saturday.

He was due to have a scan on Monday but decided not to and will be in the squad this afternoon.

Yates will be wary of the threat posed by Bristol Rovers, who are back in the Football League this season after a single season in the Conference.

He said: “They are a big club who found themselves where they were the season before last when they got relegated.

“They got promoted straightaway which is a massive plus to them. To get out of that division you do need to bounce back quickly otherwise you can find yourselves down there for a while as a few other clubs have found.

“Fair play to Darrell (Clarke) and his players, they got straight back up at the first time of asking and they have started the season pretty well. They have a great away record.”