Ian Allinson says that whatever happens next this season has been one the players of St Albans City can be proud of.

The extended break at the end of last year allowed the Saints boss more time to plan and supplement his squad, one that had struggled to get clear of the relegation places in National League South during the 2019-2020 campaign.

However, the response took everybody by surprise as they mounted a charge to the top of the table.

Allinson said: "A lot of the players were the ones we had when we finish fourth bottom last season.

"We worked hard to turn the squad around and it took a lot longer than I expected.

"Confidence is obviously quite low when you are losing games but we only changed a few players.

"The ones we have brought in have bought into what we are trying to do and they have had a good start to the season.

"I really believe the last couple of indifferent results have been down to the stop-start nature.

"We gave Sutton a scare in the FA Trophy in December and to only lose one in our 15 league games is an outstanding feat."

Their hopes of promotion to the National League were smashed when the division was declared null and void but St Albans are one of 18 clubs looking to carry on in some shape of form.

But the City boss knows he has to have one eye already on next season and what building blocks should be put in place.

"It is something we have to look at," he admitted. "Things have happened so quickly that we haven’t had two minutes to sit down and see where we are.

"I need to sit down with the owners and sit down with the players. They are the ones who have been great this year and put us in the position we are in.

"There are a number of them we’d like to sign for next year but when do you do it?

"Do you do it now or do you leave it four, six, eight weeks?

"I wouldn’t say there are too many we’d want to replace at the moment but we have forever got to be looking at evolving and improving.

"But if you sign players now and the league starts up again and you get promotion, are they the players who will be good enough in the National League?

"That’s all the things you have to take stock of."