Tyler gives Brabin a serious selection headache

The 34-year-old has been forced to watch from the sidelines in recent weeks after losing his place to Kevin Pilkington, but made a string of fine saves to ensure Hatters have a replay against their Blue Square North opponents on Monday night.

Tyler was called into action on numerous occasions as Luton were put under severe pressure, especially during the second half and speaking about the save that pleased him the most, he said: “I think the one-on-one with Andre Gray second half. I stood up as long as possible and do a lot of work on that with Dimi (Kharine) in training on that.

“It’s nice to make the save and Ed (Asafu-Adjaye) helped me out with the rebound, that’s what he’s paid for.”

Spending time on the substitutes bench has been a rarity for Tyler throughout his long career, but he admits there are no problems keeping on his toes in training.

He continued: “The most difficult bit about it is staying sharp, but Dimi kicks us up the backside if we’re not doing it in training.

“Once you get in a routine of kicking it comes easier, that’s the only thing I’m disappointed about, but I can deal with it and can work on that in training.”

It was a cup match that saw Tyler dislodged from the first team with Pilkington impressing against Northampton Town and with the former Peterborough stopper easily Town’s man of the match at Hinckley, boss Brabin now faces a tough choice for the trip to Southport on Saturday.

He said: “I thought Mark Tyler was exceptional, and that’s what I want.

“I want competition right the way throughout the squad and there’s no better example than them two (Pilkington and Tyler).

“I gave him the captains armband and he’s thrived on it, I thought he was brilliant.”

Although opponents Hinckley are struggling in the Blue Square North, they certainly didn’t look like a side short on confidence and Tyler wasn’t surprised with their performance.

He said: “We’d heard good reports about them. The way they play is quite direct and I’ve played against Craig Farrell before, so I know he’s a decent player and their other centre forward is lightning, so it’s a good game for us and one I enjoyed.

“They put Wrexham out in the last round and I thought we defended really well and if we had put a couple of opportunities away, it’s a different story.

“We were very dogged, the pitch was heavy. When we got the ball and passed it we created our best opportunities and everyone raises their game when they play a Conference team, so we knew they would be dangerous.

“Overall there were some good individual performances. It was good for the young ones, they’ve learned a few ideas from the way the gaffer wants to play and will keep them in good stead for the next few games.”

The replay will be on Monday evening at Kenilworth Road and although it adds to an already congested fixture schedule, Tyler feels it will be excellent experience for the club’s younger players, with the likes of Jake Woolley, Alasan Ann, Jerry Nash and Colby McAdams all involved last night.

He added: “It gives the youth team and up and coming ones who’ve been playing for the reserves another chance.

“It’s at home which is a great place for them to play and hopefully they’ll be a few more there to back them and cheer them on.”

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