Hawks boss Doswell hails his two ‘fantastic’ strike signings
Hawks boss Paul Doswell believes he has pulled off two of the ‘biggest signings’ during his three years at the club with the opening two Westleigh Park arrivals this summer.
Returning former Dorking Wanderers striker Jason Prior has now been joined by fellow forward Daniel Wright as the two bits of business concluded by Doswell so far in the close season.
Evergreen Wright, 37, joins the Hawks having operated at the top end of the National League and briefly in League Two with the likes of Cheltenham Town, Cambridge United, Forest Green Rovers and Torquay across a playing career which has currently spanned 15 years.
But despite Wright turning 38 in September, Doswell was not deterred and reckons both he and Prior can hit their straps and prove his statement of being two of his best recruits in his time at Westleigh Park.
The Hawks boss beamed: ‘What two fantastic signings (Wright and Prior). We were made aware - I was literally two days into a family break - that Jason was available, chairman (Derek Pope), CEO (Stuart Munro) and another board member, Mark Pope, got it done for me.
‘Massive credit to them in terms of getting that signing over the line.
‘Danny was already a target at that point, I'd already spoken to him, we felt with the way we wanted to play and getting crosses in the box, it was good to have two nines.
‘I don't care if Danny Wright is 27 or 37, he's a top, top player for this level, he can keep going for another two or three seasons. If he's still got that hunger - it's a big thing we talked about - he's a one in two, one in three (goals) number nine. Without going over the top, it's probably two of the biggest signings I've made in my time at the club.’
The striking department will see the biggest changes this summer with Wright and Prior arriving after the departures of Alex Wall and Scott Rendell. It has also been confirmed that neither Manny Duku or Stefan Payne - who arrived in February - will be returning .
Duku became a fans’ favourite, netting seven times in 18 league appearances, and had appeared to be remaining at the club for 2022/23.
However, Doswell explained why he would be moving on. ‘His (Manny's) situation changed, really, in the four months he was here. In the first two months - I think you could see it through his game-time - the first two or three months he was on fire and really happy.
‘It was just the last four or five weeks, we saw a more withdrawn Manny, there was something going on in his private life which meant he couldn't commit.
‘That's football, that happens. What we've done is moved on, as you do in football, and we're announcing two more signings tomorrow (Tuesday) on the back of
Manny not signing.’
Centre-half Ben Shroll has returnedtoAldershotafteran impressive loan stay towards the end of 2021/22 while Guy Hollis has followed Wall, Rendell, Duku, Payne and Godfrey Poku out of the club.
Doswell confirmed midfielder Jake Andrews has been offered a deal after a loanstaywiththeHawksfrom Torquay last season.