STANWAY ROVERS boss Angelo Harrop has hailed the “incredible loyalty” of his players after admitting many of them have turned down lucrative offers from rival clubs in order to stay at The Hawthorns.

Harrop feared that vultures would circle over his squad following their great success last season, finishing third in the Thurlow Nunn League premier division and staying unbeaten from October onwards.

However, as things stand, just one player has left – Joss Neale to Heybridge Swifts – and he goes with Harrop’s blessing because it is a chance for the highly-rated defender to play Ryman League football.

Everyone else has agreed to stay for another season and Stanway have also made three new signings, bringing in former Wivenhoe Town midfield maestro Marley Spindler, ex-Witham Town man Tyler Kemp and attacking midfielder Dan Thrower.

“I really feared my squad would fall apart after what happened last season,” admitted Harrop.

“It’s only natural that when you do so well, other teams will look at your players and I thought I’d lose a lot of them.

“I wondered how on earth I was going to keep everyone together.

“What pleases me more than anything is that most of my regular starters have been offered big money by other clubs – they could have doubled the money we give them at Stanway.

“But they’ve all agreed to stay because they feel they’ve got unfinished business here and because they want to be loyal to me, the management team and the club.

“I’m so proud of that because people are very quick to criticise footballers for chasing money and moving clubs at the drop of a hat.

“My boys have defied that and shown incredibly loyalty, which is to their great credit.

“We’ve only lost one player and admittedly it’s a massive blow to lose Joss to Heybridge.

“But he’s deserved his chance to play at a higher level and he goes with my blessing, because I rate him so highly and think he’s one of the best defenders in the area.

“He’ll be a huge signing for Swifts.”

In addition to keeping players, Harrop is delighted to have signed his top-three summer targets.

And he is already looking forward to Stanway’s pre-season campaign, with training getting under way next Tuesday.

Rovers then play Halstead Town at Essex University on July 7, before a home match against Braintree Town on July 14.

They face Maldon and Tiptree at Florence Park, in Tiptree, on July 16 and visit Stowmarket Town on July 21.

Next up is a match at home to Spartan South Midlands League premier division side Stotfold FC on July 23 before ending the friendlies with a home match against Burnham Ramblers on July 26.

The new Thurlow Nunn League season then starts on the much earlier-than-normal date of July 30.