This will be Richard Thorndike’s 16th season as Chairman of Alvechurch. He’s seen a lot during that time and what cannot be denied is the progress that his club has made.
“I’m immensely proud of how far we have come,” he told us. “I think it’s fair to say we’ve established ourselves as a regular Step 3 club now despite being little more than a village team with a small fan base.
“Personally, I’m still chasing the dream of moving the ground to our 20-acre site at The Hayes and I’m in constant dialogue with the council regarding this.
“It’s been dragging on for years now, but I’m confident we’ll have a decision this year and then my short-term vision is to move the club to a new stadium next season when I’d like to think that we’ll be at the very least a Step 3 club.
“Longer term, we want to get into The National League. It’s a realistic and achievable target, but in order to get there it will take a tremendous amount of hard work by everyone involved here.
“I’m really looking forward to another season in the Pitching In Southern League Premier Central. In truth, I dislike the off-season for a number of reasons like dealing with the turnover of players and all of the off-field stuff.
“This year it’s been slightly different for us in that we have retained the core of our squad and added to it rather than having to start all over again with a completely new squad, as has been the case in the past.
“The make-up of our League is really interesting. You’ve got the big-spenders such as Harborough Town and Spalding United as well as the likes of Real Bedford and Worcester who have come up and will add an extra dynamic to things.
“Then there’s the regulars who will all make it really competitive division this season.
“Like most seasons, we go into it looking to have a decent run in the FA competitions whilst also challenging for the play-off places.”
It’s a trip to Stamford AFC to kick things off for Tim Flowers' side.
IMAGE: Alvechurch FC
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