AFC Fylde manager hails the quality on offer in National League North

AFC Fylde manager Jim Bentley has been impressed by the quality of National League North and hopes to add more names to his squad for what promises to be a gruelling season.
AFC Fylde's coaching team have been able to enjoy a winning start to the season   Picture: Steve McLellanAFC Fylde's coaching team have been able to enjoy a winning start to the season   Picture: Steve McLellan
AFC Fylde's coaching team have been able to enjoy a winning start to the season Picture: Steve McLellan

Indeed, the Coasters’ boss is hopeful of further signings before his side returns to action against Altrincham in the FA Cup’s fourth qualifying round next Saturday.

League newcomers Fylde are one of three clubs setting the pace with two wins out of two so far.

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Both of their league games this season, against Darlington and Gateshead, were closely-fought encounters and settled by a solitary Nick Haughton strike.

The standard of English football’s sixth tier does not surprise Bentley, who told The Gazette: “As soon as we knew we would be in this league we did a lot of exploring, getting details about the clubs and studying players and the grounds.

“I was quite impressed with both Darlington and Gateshead, who could potentially be there or thereabouts. They were tight games which I was pleased to win.

Farsley Celtic, who we played in the FA Cup on Tuesday, are another team from our league and they were a different proposition. They were a bit more physical but it’s a tough league.

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“We won’t underestimate the competition but we do have belief in our own ability.”

The standard of the competition is one reason why Bentley is determined to add greater strength in depth to the squad.

He added: “We’ve been a bit slower than a lot of other clubs in bringing our squad together and I don’t think we’re finished yet.

“We’re still monitoring things and missed out on a couple of players this week, who chose to join another club in our league.

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“But we are moving on a couple more because we’ve got a mammoth number of games coming up.

“There’s a lot of football to be played and we will need more bodies. Hopefully we’ll get more in before Altrincham.”