GAFFER DUTTON SALUTES YOUNG GUNS

SALISBURY may be kings of the late goal, but when Tony Lee put AFC Totton 1-0 up in the 78th-minute of the playoff final even manager Brian Dutton had his doubts.

- Chris Dunlavy

“I was gutted, absolutely gutted,” admits the Whites boss. “I’d never rule our boys out, but it gives you very little time to react.

“When teams score that late, you know you’ll probably only get one more opportunity to make something happen, two at best. There’s a little bit of shellshock, and you wonder if they can shake that off.”

Shake it off they certainly did. Five minutes later, a handball in the box allowed Salisbury’s top scorer Noah Coppin to equalise from the spot and after the pair had traded goals in extra-time it was Salisbury who triumphed 4-3 on penalties.

Promotion to National League South caps an unexpected resurgence for the fallen Wiltshire giants, who reformed in the Wessex League nine years ago following the collapse of Salisbury City.

Though well supported, a modest budget saw Salisbury finish 15th in each of the previous two campaigns, with former manager Steve Claridge saying they had “no chance” of competing with the likes of big-spending Totton.

Yet the arrival of club legend Dutton in 2022 and a youthful overhaul of the playing squad last summer has wrought a dramatic transformation, culminating in a long-awaited return to Step 2.

“At the start of the season we were closer to the relegation odds than the promotion odds,” says Dutton, who made almost 200 appearances across two spells as a player at the Ray Mac.