“I WILL be looking to build them a team they can be proud of”, is the message from manager Steve Claridge who is hurrying to assemble a squad over the coming crucial months.

The football legend, who is part owner and manager of phoenix club Salisbury FC, is now setting his sights on the upcoming season and securing sponsorship funds.

“It's fantastic to be back in the Ray Mac,” said Claridge, 48, a regular pundit on BBC’s Football League Show.

“This is the result of a lot of a hard work by the new board, supportive politicians and the fans who have campaigned so hard on our behalf.

“It means we can go to the FA by the March 31 deadline and tell them we have somewhere with excellent facilities to play next season, which can only improve our chances of getting back in the non-league pyramid at a good level.

“It's only the beginning though.

We won't know for a while which league we are going to be put in so recruiting players will be difficult for some time.

“There is a variation of two or three levels we could be back in at so that will make a big difference to all sorts of things, such as wage bills and the quality of player we can attract.

“I have been looking at players for the last six months and will continue to do so to build up a profile of my squad but I won't be able to act for a month or two just yet. What I can tell people is that I will be looking to build them a team they can be proud of at whatever level.”

Claridge is also in the process, with director and club advisor Ian Ridley, of trying to bring some good-quality friendlies to the Ray Mac in July and August, with their last encounter being against Shrewton United.

The former striker of Portsmouth, Leicester City and Millwall, added: “We will be making some calls in the very near future.

“What we want is one big club to play an inaugural game against and then three or four other well-supported league clubs. We now need to make the most of the asset that is the Ray Mac and start bringing in revenue as a war chest for next season.”

Claridge bought the assets of the old club with consortium members Ridley, chairman David Phillips, Jeremy Harwood and Graeme Mundy.