LIFE’S A BEACH FOR BOSS STU
Seasiders on the crest of a wave
STUART Broadley thinks Felixstowe & Walton United are closer than ever to realising their six-year plan to get into Step 3.
The Seasiders languished at the bottom of the Isthmian North when Broadley took the reins in 2019, but he has since orchestrated a remarkable turnaround in fortunes.
Broadley has led a gradual progression at the Suffolk club during his tenure and believes that the current squad are ready to compete for title honours.
“I’m approaching four-anda-half years in charge now, and when I joined when we were bottom of the league in this division,” he told The NLP.
“Things have gone really well, there’s been a gradual progression, the first couple of years were Covid disrupted and we stayed in the league which was the main aim.
“We had a six-year aim to get to Step 3 and we’ve been close to promotion for the last couple of years but hopefully
this year will be our year.
“We signed a better quality of player this year and we’ve gone for a more tight-knit squad and I believe we’ve got the best squad in terms of quality that I’ve had at the club. We have a lot of experience but also some good young lads coming through and we have a good chance to push Lowestoft for the league title.”
Dip in form
Felixstowe made a strong start to the season but suffered a dip in form over the festive period before putting in their best performance of the season last weekend, beating rivals and table-toppers Lowestoft 3-0.
Catalyst
Broadley believes his side have turned a corner.
“We started off the season like a train and scored a hatful of goals but a poor Christmas period where we dropped off a bit but we’ve turned the corner now and results have gone back in our favour,” he added.
“Beating Lowestoft 3-0 was a fantastic performance – the lads executed the gameplan from training. The only downside was we didn’t get more goals because on the balance of play we deserved to win by more than the three. "It`s a big psychological boost for us. We still need to play in March, Lowestoft so hopefully at their place this will act as a catalyst to kickstart our season again, and give us a one up on the league leaders.”
Broadley believes that Felixstowe are ready for Step 3 with a strong squad, a thriving youth section and a loyal following.
“The chairman has backed us on and off the field and we’re ready for Step 3,” he insisted.
“We have the third best following in the league in terms of attendance and a thriving youth section with teams all the way from U6 to U18. Several first team players came through the youth section and joined Ipswich Town, but then returned to play for us, like Jack and Stuart Ainsley and Henry Barley.”