Flint Town manager Niall McGuinness hails the additions made to his squad this summer and believes the Silkmen have individuals who can “take the league by storm”.
Having finished second in the Cymru North last season, Flint Town were awarded promotion to Wales’ top flight, as they recorded 54 points from 24 games, averaging 2.5 goals per game.
Ahead of the new season, Flint have recruited invaluable Cymru Premier experience with the arrivals of Caernarfon Town captain Nathan Craig and Aberystwyth Town right-back Wes Baynes.
McGuinness has expressed his delight at adding the established Cymru Premier pair.
“To be fair, it wasn’t difficult, the Wes (Baynes) one was probably the simplest one I’ve ever had in terms of trying to sign a player,” McGuinness said.
“I tried to sign him two seasons ago and obviously he went and signed for Aber, which I appreciated as it showed that he still wanted to play at the top level still which I totally understood.
However when we got promoted, he’s very good friends with John Danby and Mark Cadwallader who are already with us, so it was a case of them phoning him and on the phone we agreed then and there, he was a simple one.”
“He’s gonna be a fantastic addition to us with his experience and his quality that he can bring,” he added.
Former Caernarfon Town skipper Nathan Craig was also one of the Silkmen’s key additions in preparation for the upcoming campaign.
The 29-year-old had played with McGuinness in their earlier years and with that, a player he pounced upon after hearing of his departure from The Oval.
“With Nathan, I’ve known him a long time, he’s actually my age, so I used to play in environments with him when I was younger and then he sort of messaged me and said ‘how are your plans going?’.
“I didn’t think he had any intention on leaving Caernarfon, so I spoke to the chairman and he spoke with me and he said ‘would you be interested?’ It was a no-brainer.
“He’s one of the most talented players within the league, so I said ‘yeah, I’d be interested, but you have to understand our circumstances.
“We had a conversation and then he stuck to everything he said and he was honest about what he was gonna do in terms of announcing to them and then leaving it a week once they’d released it just to let things settle and he was open and honest with the other clubs that had approached him.
“Ultimately, I think he felt with who we’d signed and the players we have and working under myself, he felt it was the right move for him.
“I think the biggest thing was, this is what people don’t understand, he wanted a new challenge.
“It wasn’t a case of Caernarfon deteriorating or anything like that, it just started to become repetitive being there for six or seven years.
“It was, he just felt he needed something new to give him that lift again and push his game on again.
“He’s a fantastic, talented player, really looking forward to working with him, he’s been fantastic throughout pre-season to be fair.”
Ahead of their first top-flight season in 22 years, Flint Town United have also added; Ben Burrows, Ben Lockey, Ben Nash, Conor Harwood, Harry Lockley, Kai Wallis, Mason Blackwell, Rob Hughes, Darren Thornton and Matthew Russell to their squad.
But despite their business in the transfer market, McGuinness believes there are players who hae been at the club over the last few seasons who have the potential to “take the league by storm”.
“I think the ones to watch, who maybe haven’t been there before, are Cal Bratley, I think he’ll take the league by storm, I think he’s got the ability too.
Another one is Richie Foulkes, I’m very surprised he’s never got to play at that level in his career.
“I think he’s been good enough to but he’s been quite loyal to Flint, he’s always wanted to play for Flint since moving there which I can only respect.”
“Obviously Mark Cadwallader has played in it before, but yeah they’re the two that would come to mind.
“We’ve got a number of young lads, Brandon Burrows as well who is a very good midfielder, another is Nathan Brown who’s from Chester.
“I’m looking forward to seeing Ben Nash as well, I know he’s had a couple of games at the level, but he’s got the attributes to become a top defender within the league.
“It’s exciting, but until we get going we don’t know who’s gonna go and take it by storm, who’s gonna impress week in week out and keep their consistency levels because that’s what it’s about in the Cymru Premier.
“You’ve got to have those consistency levels to stay in and around where you need to be really.”
(Featured Image: Nikitas Mesney)
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