JUSTYN Mckay admits he was "surprised" by Supermarine's improvement over the last few months and is confident the Blues will go on to seal promotion without him.

The former Swindon Town midfielder has moved on loan to Hunts Copse from Conference South outfit Basingstoke for four games, hoping the spell will do both parties good.

Boss Mark Collier was also hopeful former Bath City and Taunton defender Stuart Pearson would put pen to paper ahead of tomorrow's home clash with Oxford City.

McKay, who played two games for Mark Collier's men in August before returning to Basingstoke, has struggled for a first team place in recent weeks and hopes a spell back at Hunts Copse will see him regain fitness.

He started his return in Tuesday's 1-1 draw at Abingdon and is hoping to help the Southern League Division One promotion hopefuls back to winning ways at home to Oxford City tomorrow.

He said: "I have to admit I was surprised by how well Marine played on Tuesday.

"We certainly deserved to win the game.

"Some of the football we played was really impressive and I think it shows how high the confidence is at the moment.

"When I was there earlier in the season, you could tell they had good players but the confidence seems to have helped them play to a higher standard."

McKay is a timely arrival for Collier, who has seen Chris Taylor, JP MIlls and Jimmy Griffin leave the club in the recent weeks, but the midfielder believes the club can rise above the departures.

He said: "I know a lot of the players here and I know how good they are.

"It is a shame a few players have left but the squad is more than good enough to cope.

"I am expecting at the moment to only be here for the four games before going back to Basingstoke, but hopefully it will do myself good and help Marine.

"Come the end of the season though I see no reason why they won't be in the play-offs and winning them.

"I also think they have the players to cope with a higher standard of football next season.

"I haven't been playing much football recently and it is hard to stay fit when you are just training twice a week. Hopefully I can get a few games for Marine to help with my fitness levels."

With Kyle Lapham and Steve Jenkins approaching full fitness, Collier insists his side were not in a dire situation but admits the addition of McKay and hopefully Pearson were a boost.

He said: "Justyn has three more games for us initially. He did very well on Tuesday night and at the end of the spell we will talk again to see what the situation is.

"Stuart has moved to Swindon and so we have put in a seven days of approach for him to Taunton and are hopeful we will sign him by Saturday.

"We have 10 games left now and with promotion to chase and a cup final to play in, it is an exciting time to be at Supermarine."

Marine will be coming up against a familiar face tomorrow, with former midfielder Jimmy Griffin now in Oxford City's ranks.