He believes the Unibond Premier club faces a bright future and hopes the boss's one year contract will shortly be extended.

Former England under-21 international Gordon (left) said: "Players are concentrating on getting results and I am sure David is concentrating on the same thing.

"But there could be some insecurity if it gets towards the end of the season. If he is not there next season, a lot of the players will leave.

"They respect him, they play for him. It is one of the most important things for a manager to get the players on your side."

Gordon, 35, is working on getting coaching badges and makes a 260-mile round trip at least twice weekly to train and be available for Robins' matches. He is convinced Holdsworth – whose nickname is Reggie – is destined to manage at a high level.

He added:"I have played against him but didn't get to know Reggie personally until I came here. I have played for a lot of managers and his potential is massive.

"He has the respect of professional managers and has the infrastructure to go a lot higher. The club should be bending over backwards to keep him."

His comments come after Holdsworth has been linked to several clubs, including Colchester United and Crewe Alexandra.

Fan Steve Smith, 50, hopes there will soon be an extension to his Ilkeston deal. "He has done everything he said he would. We are playing good football, there are no has-beens and five or six players are on long term contracts. We hope the manager will be on one, too," he added.

Howard Appleyard, a supporter for 40 years, said:"He is one of the best managers we have had. He has a good young side and has really got them playing."

Holdsworth is now preparing his squad for the league trip to Prescot Cables on Saturday and said: "I am very appreciative that people are enjoying it.

"I said I would try and bring fluent football and an offensive game and that is how it is turning out. It is really pleasing that the fans are happy."

Last week, he had to cancel Thursday's training after a bug felled several players but was delighted with the display against Witton Albion. "We had a tough week, our workrate was excellent and I am very pleased.

"Under those circumstances, it was an even better performance and we have shown good form during the month.

"We were better in front of goal but still feel one day we will smash a team. You sometimes see a different picture than the league position," added Holdsworth, whose side has games in hand over most of the promotion chasers.

He was able to give run-outs to benched strikers Callum Green and Amari Morgan-Smith, who had some lively moments which suggested he will soon start scoring again.

After Saturday's trip, Ilkeston face two home games next week, starting with the league visit of Boston United on Tuesday, kick-off 7.45pm.