Romsey Town manager Andy Samuels is confident of his side’s fortunes with the new Wessex Division 1 season starting this weekend, writes Jack Oliver Smith.

After a hard-and-fast pre-season and with new additions to the squad, Samuels is hoping the hard work that he and his backroom team have put in will pay off.

“I’m very excited, as always, even though the off-season work means I haven’t stopped! We’re going through a transition period – we’ve lost some key players to the side that finished last season. But I think we have recruited well and opposition sides may look at us and wonder how we have attracted them, but they’re buying into what we’re doing already. We need patience and time for us to get back to the level we were at when I left a few years ago. Obviously our aim is to have a better season than last, and another cup run would be nice, but we are going to take it game-by-game and show everyone that we’ve put in a lot of hard work in training.”

When I spoke to Samuels just after his return to Romsey was confirmed in February, he said his plans for this season had already begun. Have they all gone accordingly?

“Yes. Out of the six players I’ve brought in so far, three them were ones I really wanted to have playing for us. Of course it’s sad that a few players have gone away from us, but other teams in our league have big playing budgets and they have gone in that direction. On the flip side, we’ve had players approach us who have bought into my thinking and we have them in the group now. So on the whole, I’m pleased with how it’s gone.”

Pre-season ended with a 8-3 victory over Colden Common on Tuesday. How does Samuels feel the whole programme went?

“It’s gone OK. We’ve had some defeats, but we chose to take on clubs such as Bemerton Heath and Stoneham, who are in higher divisions and on a higher level to us. I want us to be challenged and gauge where we are and there have been a lot of positives to gain from these matches.”

Romsey and Samuels hit the ground running upon his return, winning games immediately and appearing in a cup final. Now the season begins with Samuels at the helm, does he feel he can push the team to a much higher league table finish?

“I think so! It’s been nice to have a full pre-season and put a lot of preparations in. I’ve had a lot of discussions with our head coach, and we’ve discussed ways we can tweak things, such as the way we play. He’s been working very hard in training sessions and I think we have lots of building blocks in place now. Week on week, we are slowly adding little bits to our performances and improving all the time. We are by no means a finished article – which is actually where we’d like to be. We don’t want to be a finished article when there’s nothing up for grabs yet.”

Another new addition to Romsey Town is its first women’s team. As someone who is passionate about the fortunes of the club, is Samuels excited by this?

“It’s something we’ve wanted to do for a long time. We’ve had kits for a women’s team waiting in the changing room for a long time so it’s nice to finally have the players for them. I believe their home games will be played at the AEC Protection Ground, and they’ve also been training with us to help them prepare. It will obviously be a work in progress, you can’t expect a new team to win lots of games straight away, but the same is the same as it is for the men – slowly build things up and hopefully have lots to show for it with time.”

Due to the small nature of the club, volunteers are key to the smooth running of it.

Samuels is keen to make sure as many locals as possible are willing to help. 

“We want big crowds. Obviously that is partly down to me by making sure we win games and play entertaining football but what I’d love is the locals to come down to help and give their support to the players. We always need extra support and extra backing, and if businesses are willing to help us out, we’d all be very grateful. I believe we are a sleeping giant and we’re very close to being successful, and volunteers are key. Whether it is one to two hours a week or a month, we would appreciate it hugely.”

Romsey begin their season at home against Whitchurch United on Saturday at 3pm. Anyone willing to volunteer at the club can email the club’s secretary at rtfcclubsecretary@gmail.com.