We have shown we can thrive in this division

ROSS JENKINS and his staff took about three days to enjoy their National League South promotion before getting back to work.

- MATT BADCOCK

The first job was to start watching last year’s games from the division they have entered for the first time in club history.

Playing style, shape, systems, restarts, dead-balls, how many times the ball goes out of play – Jenkins wanted to drill into as many games and teams as possible. By the start of pre-season they’d watched every team at least once.

Then when pre-season kicked off, they were out on the ground getting eyes on as many teams and styles as possible.

“We sounded like a broken record, the staff,” the 32-year-old says. “We were telling the boys, ‘Listen, we’re good enough. We’re here for a reason. We’ve got enough to survive, hurt teams and enjoy it’.

“We banged on about, ‘You’ve got to believe’. I think now we’ve had a couple of good results and a few good performances, that belief breeds itself. It’s less us enforcing it and more the boys promoting it in the changing room. They can feel it.

“There were a lot of doubters outside the football club saying we’re going to get battered each week. I had direct messages saying we’ll go straight back down!

“To see our first eight games and where we are – and where we should be points wise – is really pleasing. The tough thing now is it’s going to get even harder.”

City arrived at NonLeague's top table through the National League South play-offs, beating Worthing in the semi-final before a 4-0 demolition of St Albans City in the final.

That same scoreline against Boreham Wood on Bank Holiday Monday put their first three points on the board, followed by a 3-3 draw at leaders Solihull Moors before an impressive 5-2 win over Hartlepool last weekend.

Peace of mind