Tom Webb has seen it, done it, got the T-shirt. And in an age when loyalty in sport seems to be declining, that’s something that Gloucester City’s record appearance holder has got in spades.

And yet – and this is what really sets him apart – talk to Tom Webb for a few minutes and it’s never about what he has done for the club, it’s far more about what the club have done for him.

“I’ve been very lucky to have played so long at such a good club,” said the 34-year-old.

Close on 18 years and some 700-plus games later, it’s clear that Gloucester City have been very lucky to have had Webb in their midfield for so long and, to be fair, there’s no one at the club or among their supporters who is anything other than incredibly appreciative of all he has done for them.

His playing career was cut short after he sustained a knee injury at the end of last season, but he has moved seamlessly onto the coaching side at Gloucester and again, as far as he’s concerned, it’s all about what the club have done for him.

“I’m very lucky to have gone into coaching at the level I’m at,” said Webb. “I’m very fortunate that the club still wanted me.

“National League South is a very good standard and I’m very grateful to the club for giving me that opportunity.”

And while it undoubtedly has been an opportunity it’s also been a challenge, because by early January the club were on their third manager of the season following the departures of Marc Richards and Chris Todd, and the appointment of Mike Cook.

That wasn’t the plan at the start of the campaign, of course. Indeed the plan was for Webb to operate as a player/coach for a couple of seasons and continue to play around 20 games.

Ask him to compare playing and coaching and he’ll say, “it’s chalk and cheese.”

“Not being able to play anymore shook me up more than I thought it would, there’s nothing quite like playing,” he admitted. “That feeling before a game, and when you win a game you get such a buzz – there’s nothing like it.

“Coaching is the nearest thing to it but it’s different when you’re coaching.”

And it’s tougher in many ways too because once the players cross the white line, there is a limit to what a coach can do to affect a game.

Not that that relieves the pressure of course. If anything it only adds to it and with Gloucester struggling at the wrong end of the table, Webb has certainly found it tough going at times.

Avoiding relegation is obviously the key objective this season and when Webb spoke to The Local Answer the club had enjoyed three encouraging results following the appointment of Mike Cook.

The club continue to play their home matches in Evesham but Webb is increasingly optimistic that they will be able to return to Meadow Park in January 2020, a ground that they’ve not played at since the devastating floods of 2007.

The smart money would be on Webb, who will have a stand named after him, still being involved with the club but Webb himself admits that that is not a definite.

The married dad of two young children and PE teacher at Chosen Hill School, said: “It’s a huge commitment and I’ve dedicated a lot of my life to the club. As a captain and a player you have to carry a lot with you, but as a coach it’s even more.

“Hopefully we can stay up and then sit down at the end of the season and talk about what needs to be done and kick on from there.”

And if Gloucester fans are worried by those previous two sentences, they should be more reassured by the next two.

“It would be great to be part of it when the club go back to Meadow Park,” Webb added.

“I’m Gloucester born and bred and I’ve never left the area, it will be terrific for the club.”

And it will be terrific for the club if Tom Webb, as he surely will be, is still one of the driving forces at the club come January 2020 and well beyond.