THIS time of year is always about the announcement of new arrivals, and Eastleigh‘s capture of another former Conference promotion winner in Andy Drury is a massive statement for the Spitfires to make – before his own follows in six weeks!
The 31-year-old midfielder, who won the 2009-10 title with Stevenage and has since played in the Conference for Luton, the Championship for Ipswich, League One for Crawley and League Two on his return to Kenilworth Road last term, is the summer’s stand-out signing so far for me.
He will bring balance to a 4-4-2 formation favoured by Richard Hill, with Lee Cook – a champion last term with Barnet – added to the left as they look to push on in the Vanarama National League.
Precedent
Drury will also add the guile, creativity and vision they maybe lacked at times last year with strikers and central players filling wide berths.
Of course, the playmaking ability of Josh Payne, smuggled out of Woking, will be sandwiched nicely in between the two experienced widemen.
I caught up with Drury late on Thursday night as he watered his plants, and although he sees similarities between Eastleigh’s well-financed ambition and that he was part of at Stevenage and, post-Project Promotion, at Crawley, he has more pressing concerns.
Like the fact his partner Marilaina is due to give birth to their second baby on Saturday September 5 – when Eastleigh are up in Cumbria for their longest trip of the season to Barrow.
“It might be a good one to miss!” he laughs, before I tell him about the time I watched Eastleigh in an FA Trophy tie at Bury Town in December 2013, and striker Craig McAllister played and scored despite his fiancee giving birth over night while he was in a Stansted hotel preparing for the game.
A precedent has been set, and the Sittingbourne-based player laughs again: “Oh well, we’re convinced they’ve got the dates wrong anyway, but we’ll either get her induced or I’ll drive up there in the car. I don’t want to be missing any games, especially when I expect to be challenging near the top of the table.”
Experience
Although Drury did not win promotion with Luton, he made a big impression on Hatters fans in 2010-11 before Ipswich met the £150,000 release fee in his contract to take him to Portman Road.
He was far and away the best player in Non-League at the time, and although Drury might not have hit the heights again last term after his return, with the higher level experience he had added, the man known as ‘Jukebox’ will be expected to be top of the pops again this season.
It is something he embraces, adding: “The ambition at Eastleigh is to go up a couple of leagues. I’ve been part of the start of that at Stevenage, and I joined Crawley when they’d got to League One. At my age I want to be in a team pushing for titles, not scrapping around.
“Richard’s training sessions have been first class so far – exactly what I like with the ball and his teams play a style that suits me. It’s an exciting time for both the club and me personally.”
And time for Drury to light up the National League again, like the thunder and lightning did the south-east sky not long after he’d put the hose away on Thursday. One task rendered pointless.
His arrival – and the one soon to come – definitely not as Eastleigh and the Drury family and garden continue to bloom.
