CINDERFORD Town co-manager Allan Gough wants to make the upcoming historic season one to remember for supporters after the club’s turbulent summer.

He also hit out at suggestions around the Southern League that the Foresters were going to ’do a Bashley’, and become the whipping boys of the Southern League Premier Division after financial difficulties and a turnover of staff and players.

Town lost almost the entirety of the title-winning squad that earned promotion, as well as the services of manager John Brough in late May.

But despite that, Gough believes the side he and joint boss Chris Burns have put together is a better one than they initially expected.

“I think we’ve done extremely well to put a side together as quickly as we have,” Gough said.

“We’ve got some experienced players and we’ve mixed that with younger players and we’ll be bringing through some of the youth team’s lads too. We want to give them that chance.”

Of those who featured for Town last season, just newly-appointed captain and local lad Josh Nelmes, Sam Hunt and now Sammie Hicks, who appeared on loan from Gloucester City during the run-in, have returned.

Former Hereford forward Carlos Moreira has also joined the Gough and Burns revolution at Cinderford Town.

But Gough says he’s pleased with the calibre of players the club has attracted despite the off-field turmoil and low playing budget.

“I’m quite pleased with Ben Hands and Gethyn Hill,” he admitted.

“It will be interesting because I don’t know the standard of the league very well. We’ve been written off by a lot of people and they don’t realise the side that we’ve built.

“People say ’they’re going to do a Bashley’ but we’ve been really pleased and surprised by some of the quality in the squad.”

Town make their Southern League Premier bow at play-off runners-up Hitchin Town on Saturday – a start Gough admitted wasn’t the kindest – and will have to do so without defender Lee Hartshorne and midfielder Louis Feeley, who are both unavailable.

Centre-half Tom Morgan, who has played at Hartpury College, and former Gloucester City youngster Billy Guest have both impressed Gough and Burns, and are likely to earn a call-up from Town’s Under-18s side.

• CINDERFORD Town’s first home fixture in the Southern League Premier Division is next Tuesday, August 9, against Dorchester Town.

The match kicks off at 7.45pm.