ALAN Dowson believes Woking are a Football League club in waiting.

Dowson, who bossed the Cards to 10th place in the Vanarama National League this year after masterminding promotion in 2019, said: “It’s a fantastic club and I believe that somewhere along the line it’s a Football League club here, and it’s up to me to make it happen.

“I’ve got another year to go on my contract and I’ll battle my socks off every day in that year to see if we can achieve what I want to achieve. Can everyone find 10 people who want to come down to put money into Woking and get us into the Football League?”

However, he acknowledges that the club will face some tough battles on the pitch in the new National League season, which he expects to get under way in the second week of September.

Dowson, who is now working four hours a day after previously being fully furloughed, said: “I think it will be the toughest league it’s ever been. We’ll have the worst budget in the league. But let’s get a football team that the town’s proud of.

“We’ve got the 10th-best manager and 10th-best team at the moment. I want players who can finish ninth, eighth... do better.”

A player likely to boost the Cards’ chances of a higher finish is former England international Matt Jarvis, who penned a one-year deal with the club on Tuesday.

The winger, 34, made two appearances for Woking as a substitute, scoring once, during 2019-20.

However, one player who won’t be part of the Cards’ campaign is ex-Jamaica international Jamar Loza, who has joined National League newcomers King’s Lynn Town. The Linnets are based 100 miles nearer the frontman’s Norwich home than Woking are.

Dowson said: “We’ve lost Loza for a better deal, but he should have rung me. That would have been the gentlemanly thing to do.”

Woking are set to return to training at the end of this month.

For more local sport news, get the 9 July edition of the News & Mail