'We want to make an impact' - Braintree chairman

Braintree Town won promotion to the National League for 2024-25 under boss Angelo Harrop

Braintree Town chairman Lee Harding says the club "don’t want to make up the numbers" as they prepare to return to the National League for the first time since 2019.

The Iron beat Worthing 4-3 in a thrilling National League South play-off final earlier this month to clinch a place back in the top tier of non-league football.

"We want to compete and make an impact," Harding told BBC Radio Essex. "The target is to get in the play-offs.

"We know it’s going to be tougher but, with respect, instead of playing Needham Market we’re going to be playing Oldham, Rochdale and Southend and so on.

"It’s a great position for the club to be in and we’re looking forward to it.

"We go into the FA Cup at a later stage so there’s an increased chance of reaching the first round and while some teams in the National League don’t take the FA Trophy too seriously, we’d quite like to get Braintree Town to Wembley."

Harding says he has had to take the difficult decision to increase admission prices in an effort to generate the funds to achieve those high ambitions.

"It was so tough to put the ticket prices up but we have to give Angelo [Harrop, the club's manager] the best budget we can and we think we’ve got it about right," he added.

Harding says Braintree plan "a mixture of full-time and part-time" with their playing squad but is also targeting improvements to their ground to ensure the club can "play at the highest possible sustainable level".

"Cressing Road is home and we love the old girl dearly but we’ve been here since 1922 and there are limiting factors to the site," Harding added.

"The best analogy I can give is we’re a growing family, there’s another one on the way and we’re sitting in a Victorian semi and we need to move to a four or five bedroom house on the outskirts of town."

Harding also admitted he expects head coach Harrop, who recently agreed a new deal with the Iron, to "attract attention" from other clubs.

"He will manage at a higher level, a far higher level," Harding said. "Angelo has a winning mentality and gets the best out of people.

"The Cowleys [Danny and Nicky, now managing at nearby Colchester] were here the season we got close to the EFL and their career has pushed on from there."

Lee Harding was speaking to BBC Essex's Glenn Speller