HEAD NORTH TO THE TOP!
New boss Dean says Wood can hit new heights
DEAN BARKER says his re-shaped Northwood shouldn’t be afraid to aim high this season.
The 34-year-old took over as boss of the Isthmian South Central club this summer.
Last season he was part of the staff at Wingate & Finchley, where he managed the U23s following a record-breaking spell at Step 5 outfit Cockfosters, who he led to their highest ever finish.
Barker’s side even beat a young Chelsea side 1-0 last weekend to win the Peter Barry Trophy.
Barker is pleased with the way things are shaping up and although he says it will take time to get everything in place, he’s feeling positive ahead of the new campaign.
“It’s going to take a little while for us to settle in and the club has struggled for the last few years so the expectation is to bring a bit of stability,” Barker told The NLP. “The FA Cup and FA Trophy draws are out, which brings a bit of excitement, and we’ve got Tooting & Mitcham on the first day of the league. They came down from the Bostik Premier last season so that will be a good test and we can see where we’re at.
Scratch
“The ones that have played for me before know the way we work and the ones who haven’t are getting used to the way we train and how we prepare.
“That will take time, we’re not expecting to do everything straightaway but give it a bit of time and hopefully we can have a good season.
“If we can finish in the top ten that would be a great achievement.”
With the club offering £40 season tickets and a youth section that starts at U6s, Barker says the club are looking at a bright future.
“It’s really good,” Barker said. “We’ve started from scratch – a few have gone with the old manager and some of the boys that ended the season were on loan from local clubs, so it’s basically like starting a club from brand new.
“We didn’t concede a goal in our first three preseason friendlies and the performances have been good.
“We’ve looked at around 30 players so far, which has been good, and, alright it’s pre-season, but we won a trophy when we beat Chelsea.
“They were a young side but obviously had some U18 and U19 internationals who could be big names in a few years, so it was a good experience.”