Jim Bentley says Southport are striving to improve after steering the Sandgrounders to safety.
Their topsy-turvy season was eventually brought to a steady conclusion when they beat Rushall Olympic 3-0 in the penultimate game of the campaign.
Bentley took over in August with the Yellows rooted to the bottom of the National League North as their status in the league was under immense pressure after picking up one point in their first three matches.
The former Morecambe and Rochdale boss said the conclusion of the season was a ‘relief’ but he was left proud of their achievements after taking over in a difficult position.
“It was a relief because of the situation we were in but when you go back to when I came to the club, I think anyone would’ve snapped our hand off to be safe for the Rushall Olympic game,” said Bentley, speaking to Off The Park.
“Sometimes you’re a victim of your own success, you start well and people talk about playoffs but we’ve been up and down, overall, the biggest priority was to stay in the division after the run of the previous season and taking one point from the first six.
“In football, there’s no magic wand, it’s taken a lot of hard work but it’s a good achievement, in a tough league, after the start we had. It’s been a big turnaround in the first eight months when I took over, we were seven points off safety, rooted to the bottom, I’m pleased and proud of what we achieved.”
This summer is one of the biggest in the club’s history as Southport look to establish themselves into the upper reaches of the table. It is the first summer for Big Help Group as custodians of the Sandgrounders with Bentley set for his first pre-season in charge.
There have already been some key decisions made with captain Adam Anson and goalscorer Jordan Archer released upon the expiry of their contracts. Question marks remain over Jack Doyle, who swooped up accolades at the most recent awards night, as well as star players Tyler Walton and Josh Hmami who have been offered extensions.
The retained list prompted surprise seeing some of the fan-favourites depart and this week, Bentley met with them to discuss their futures as well as hold meetings with sporting director Tammy Burgess, assistant Andy Burgess and chairman Peter Mitchell.
The 47-year-old explained: “We will have a meeting with the players, some will go and some will stay, some have options – there’s a lot to go through.
“There’s been a lot of stuff going on off the field since the Big Help come in trying to shape the club how they want to. When you come to a club, some things pop up that you didn’t expect, we’ll get set a budget, it won’t be the top budget, there will be a little bit more than last season but it’s not going to be life-changing, we’re not ripping everything up, going full-time and throwing money at it – there’s a slight increase.
“We have to make sure we use the budget wisely with players we’ve got or bring new ones in to improve it.
“It’s a big time now, there’s a lot of work going on behind the scenes, it’s about improve all areas, the training facility, what we do, try get our squad better and get everything in place for a good start next season.”
Due to their perilous position and the difficulty within the market, Southport resorted to the loan market welcoming the likes of Marcus Carver, Richie Bennett and Danny Philliskirk.
But the Southport boss believes only slight tweaks are needed and wholesale changes can be unhealthy. Bentley explained: “There’s good players at the club, lads who have improved massively so do we rip it up and start again? Which I don’t think is healthy, or do we keep ahold of everyone? Well no because we’ve struggled in the last couple of seasons with the same squad so we’ve got to get the balance right.
“Ultimately what you’re trying to do is improve every area, we don’t just need to build a team but a squad, as we seen this season it’s a squad game because there’s that much football.
“We’ve got to make sure what we’re doing is with the football club’s best interests at heart. I wouldn’t expect to rip the whole squad to bits but likewise, we can’t keep ahold of everyone so there will be players leaving and new players coming.”
Due diligence is underway at Haig Avenue as they look to build a competitive squad for next season. Away from the playing squad, there is still a focus on stability off the pitch and for the Southport manager he says they have to “strive” for improvement and believes they will.
“It’s evident we’ve changed the style of play, you can’t go from one extreme to another,” he said.
“I’ve mentioned training on a third of the pitch so how are you meant to play out on the third of a pitch or play out from the goalkeeper on a third of a pitch or direct play when you’re on a third of the pitch?
“We’re hoping to improve that area which in hand helps you with how you go about training. Everyone has seen we’ve tried to play in the right areas, played good football and scored good goals but there’s room for direct play.
“The better-rounded, more in the armoury you are, it’s better, you don’t want to be a one-trick pony, there’s a lot of factors – I always believe you should be adaptable and find a way. With all that in the pot, I believe we will get better – you have to strive to get better.”
