Recent Shrewsbury Town signing Terry Dunfield makes a quick return to former club Macclesfield on Saturday – insisting: “I can’t wait.”
The Canadian midfielder, who has played seven games for Town, admits it will be a strange sensation facing his former team-mates so soon, but his main concern is helping his new club gain a vital win to keep alive their automatic promotion hopes.
“It will be strange going back but I’m really excited,” said Dunfield, who turned 27 last Friday. “I had some good times there but we need three points desperately and hopefully we can get them to sort out our away form.
“I’ve lived in Macclesfield for the last 10 or 11 years so in a way it’s my home, but coming here to Shrewsbury it’s now on to bigger and better things.
“The Macclesfield fans were great to me and I really enjoyed every day there. It will be strange walking into the away dressing room, but I can’t wait.”
Dunfield spent 18 months at Moss Rose, scoring twice in 61 league games. His last outing for the Cheshire club was in their narrow 1-0 FA Cup third round defeat at home to Everton last month before he joined Shrewsbury for an undisclosed fee.
“I’ve moved in with Graham Coughlan up this way but I’ve still got a place in Macclesfield,” he said. “I’ll keep my head down shopping there at the moment!”
Dunfield needed six stitches to a gashed head in the first half of last weekend’s 3-1 defeat at Luton but battled on and was arguably Town’s best performer at Kenilworth Road.
He admits he found it difficult to find his feet in his first couple of games but is now starting to feel at home.
“It was difficult at first,” he said. “You see players transferred and you think why can’t they settle as they’re great players going into a good team, but when you actually do it yourself it does maybe take four or five games to see which way Holty’s going to run or whether to get the ball off the back four.
“The set-up here is great, the fans, also the coaching.
“The training’s been different class and I’ve really enjoyed coming into work every day.”
As for Town’s promotion prospects, Dunfield, who would love to add to his collection of junior Canadian caps by representing his country at senior level, firmly believes they have a great chance of pushing for a place in League One.
“The gaffer said to us this week that it’s like a mini-season for us now. We are fifth and have played a couple of extra games but if we can kick on and do well from here you never know, we can maybe try and get into the top three.”
Boss Paul Simpson has been pleased with Dunfield since his arrival at the club and he’s backing the player to take his return to Macclesfield in his stride.
“I always think it’s very difficult to go and play at a club you’ve just left,” said Simpson. “But I’m sure he’s looking forward to it and he’s got nothing to prove to anybody there as he was fantastic for them. He’s just got to go and do the job we want him to do for us.
“I thought he was excellent last Saturday at Luton. He’s had a couple of very good games and showed real character at Luton. I would expect he’ll show a bit of character this weekend as well.”