BIG STEP UP WILL MAKE MEN OF US

FC ISLE of Man boss Chris Bass says the chance to play on the mainland will allow their young stars to thrive.

Based in the island’s capital Douglas, the club were told they will be playing their inaugural season in Division One South of the North West Counties League at Step 6.

Having announced their intention to join the Non-League pyramid last August, Bass knows this is a huge milestone for the Ravens.

“It’s the news we’ve been waiting for,” the former St George’s manager told The NLP. “So much has been done over the last two years to get us here and I think (sporting director) Paul Jones has done a fantastic job,

“It’s a huge boost both for football on the Isle of Man, but also for the community.

“The ambition is to push youth players as far as they can go, whether that be with us or should they move on. We will see it as a huge achievement if we can get players to reach their full potential. For the first few years all our players will be from the Isle of Man but that may change as we move up the leagues.

“Look at Jersey Bulls. They took their league by storm. We want to get up the football pyramid and will be thinking about our team for this season but also working towards developing players for the next. We’re always going to have an eye on the future.

“There is added responsibility now we are representing the entire Isle of Man. We want to show the best side of the island and also respect the huge investment we have from Manx Telecom.”

The Isle of Man Premier League is only a 22-game season, but the Ravens may have to play over double that.

“It is like managing a national team, but with the possibility of 40 to 50 games in a season,” Bass said. “It’s not daunting, even if we have to play 60 games, I’d love it.”