NON LEAGUE: AVELEY may have been viewed as overachievers by many after they made the play-offs last season but Justin Gardner is asking his players to go one step better this year, writes Luke Lambert.

The club began pre-season training last weekend as they step up their fitness regime to be ready for the season kick-off on August 10. Gardner said towards the end of last season that his primary worry was keeping his successful squad together and that concern has proved well founded. Almost half of his squad has moved to other clubs in the last two months.

“We were victims of our own success. We are on a shoestring budget whereas a lot of the clubs we are competing against have financial muscle to flex. We have lost a lot of good players – I wanted to keep 80 per cent of the squad but we weren’t able to.”

Aveley have lost Jack Stevenson, Sheldon Sellears, Alex Read, Andre Foster, Petrit Elbi and Junior Dadson amongst others but the loss of 30-goal striker Jordan Cox was a big blow.

Gardner said: “31 goals are not easy to replace but we must not dwell on the past and move forward. We have signed some players who did a great job last year and I am confident we have a stronger squad than last year.”

Sammy Knott, Jack Giddens and Sosthene Yao are all new signings with Jack Stevenson, Danny Hopkins, Junior Appiah, Teddy Nesbitt and Spencer Harrison, Luke Wilson, Bradley Thomas, and club captain Billy Holland all signing up from last season.

“It is my job to find the right replacements and I think I have done that. I want to stay ahead of the competition. I have always got my eye open and our squad is very good. Yao has scored goals wherever he has been.

“We could easily have gone up last year but lost players at key times. This year we have a strong squad assembled already.”

Gardner says all the teams in the league will prove a challenge this season. He thinks up to eight teams could be challenging for the title.

“Sudbury, Maldon & Tiptree, Rebridge, Harlow, Heybridge – the list goes on. The players will have to be on their toes in every match.”

Aveley will be sharing Mill Field with last season’s champions Grays Athletic after West Ham decided to reclaim Rush Green. Gardner said he was more than happy to share.

“We need to stick together in non-league football. I would like to think a team would help us out if we didn’t have a home ground. We are one of the lucky few who own our ground and I think this is a partnership that will work. My only selfish concern is the condition of the pitch.”

Gardner concluded by saying: “We have the squad to get promoted and that is our aim this year. We always want to aim high and this year we want to hit the top.”