Bury chairman Brian Fenton has paid tribute to his manager and players for their achievement so far this season.

The Shakers went into the season aiming to avoid the drop from League One, but they have punched above their weight considerably, and are currently 10th.

“They have done far better than was expected,” said Fenton. “Richie’s brief was to keep us in the division and, so far, he’s doing much more than that. For us to be 10th at this stage of the season with the resources available to us is fantastic.

“I know the players are looking at the teams above us, and that shows how confident and ambitous they are, which is a good thing. For me, I keep looking at the bottom half dozen teams, but that’s part of my job.”

Fenton said it was fortunate the club would not lose out too much as a result of the postponement of last Saturday’s game against Hartlepool at Gigg Lane.

“If it had been against Huddersfield, who have a big following, it would have been far worse,” he said.

Meanwhile, Bury plan to relay the pitch and install sprinkers at Gigg Lane, revamp the home dressing room and put in draining at the training ground during the summer in work which will cost more than £100,000.