Worksop Town boss Craig Parry turns attention to recruitment after retained list is confirmed

Vaughan Redford, Luke Waterfall, Bailey Gooda, Jordan Burrow, Tommy Taylor, Mason O’Malley, Deegan Atherton, Josh Wilde and Sam Wedgbury are all confirmed for the 26/27 season.

Oli Greaves has also agreed a new deal after discussions, while negotiations are currently ongoing with Aleks Starcenko,

“We've obviously had to make some strong decisions with the retained list, and we're happy with the players that we have kept,” said Parry.

“We're a bit disappointed with one or two players that we've made offers to, but unfortunately there are teams below us in Step 3 who are offering substantial figures.

“Overall I'm very happy with the ones we've retained, and it gives us a good platform to move forward and continue the good form we had at the back end of last season.”

Parry was also delighted to see Greaves confirmed as a Tiger for next season.

“I'm delighted to say that Oli Greaves has agreed terms with us for next season,” he said. “I think he was exceptional when he came in. He nearly scored a goal every other game, and he really helped us last season.

“We're still in discussions with Aleks Starcenko, but it's no secret that we want to keep him.

“He's been a vital part of our progression. We had a meeting with him on Monday, and we'll keep talking to him over the coming days."

Sam Wedgbury will take on the role as player coach.

"It's probably the right time for Wedge to get his hands dirty in the coaching side,” added Parry,

“He's still going to be in the changing room and around the players, and he'll help us coordinate how we want the changing room atmosphere to be.

“I think we realised last year is that there is a lot of pressure that gets put on the staff. There is a heavier workload, with more sessions, more organisation and more research needed, so we wanted another body in there to help us, and there's no better person to do that then Wedge.

“His experience is important and he's been on this journey with me for a long time, so it's great to add him to the staff.”

Parry has now turned his attention to bolstering the Worksop squad as they look to secure National League status for another year.

“I think it's important that we bring a mix of youth and experience,” he said.

“We do need to add a few experience lads, as we have lost a couple from last season. We feel that we've made one very strong signing in experience, but the rest will young, enthusiastic, athletic players who can cover a lot of the pitch.

“We've got some strong targets that we want to work with, and we identified them early last season so hopefully we can get them over the line.

“We know the type of player that we want, so we can build the side around that.

“We know the strength of the league, and it's only getting stronger with teams like Morecambe coming down, who have historically been a football league team.

“There are more teams that are going full-time, but we've got to keep worrying about ourselves and make sure that we focus on improving from last year and making sure we're competitive in each game.”