Matt Brown will be channelling all his energies into managing Andoversford when they step up into the Northern Senior Football League this season.

The club won promotion into Division Two after winning the Cheltenham League last time out, a campaign that saw Brown, a defensive midfielder, play a full part both on and off the pitch.

But Brown insists he has pulled his boots on for the last time as the club’s flagship team look to kick on after last season’s success.

“I’ve retired from playing, my legs haven’t got it in them,” said Brown. “I’m 40, I’ve done playing. I want the club to be successful and I don’t think a player/manager is suited for this level.

“I can be a voice on the side who can help the players during games.”

Brown has certainly been a major player for the club since they merged with Christchurch Nomads back in 2003 and became known as Andoversford Nomads.

These days they are just Andoversford – the first team play their home games at Winchcombe School – and it is the first time they have played in the Northern Senior League since the merger some 16 years ago.

“Yes, it is a big step up and it’s a new experience for me as a manager as it is for quite a few of the players,” said Brown. “Some of them have played at this level and a couple have played at a higher level so it’s all quite exciting.

“We’ll be playing at new grounds and while there will be a bit more travelling, that’s what you have to do if you’re ambitious. We want to play at as high a level as we can.”

And Brown is confident that he has the players to succeed.

Andoversford’s predecessors as Cheltenham League champions – Cheltenham Civil Service – will be playing in Division One of the Northern Senior League in 2019/20 after finishing second last season and Brown said: “We want to do something like they did.

“We don’t want to be scrapping around near the bottom or trying to get into mid-table, we want to finish in the top half and I think we’ve got quite a good chance of doing that.

“We played Charlton Rovers in pre-season last year and drew with them and we played a few other teams in Division One and drew with them.

“The key for me is to get my guys as fit as I can. My players are good technically but, for me, it’s all about fitness.

“You don’t make errors if you’re fit enough.”

And Brown was certainly true to his beliefs because he had the players back in for pre-season training as long ago as Tuesday 11th June.

“I had them back even earlier last year,” he laughed, “we started pre-season on the first Tuesday in June.”

And it’s obviously something that works because last season shaped up very well for the club!