BILLERICAY Town favourite Glenn Poole says deciding to leave the club was a difficult decision but says he wanted to do so on a high.

The 34-year-old made the announcement last Friday, after more than three successful years at New Lodge that has seen him win the Ryman Premier League title in 2012 and crowned the club’s player of the year twice.

But after a year in which Town reached the final of the Essex Senior Cup, only to be beaten 5-0 by Concord Rangers, and the semi-final of the Ryman League Cup, Poole says he feels this is the right time to move on.

“It’s been on my mind a while,” said the veteran midfielder, who made 58 appearance last season, scoring eight goals. “It is the longest I have ever been at a club and this season has been a good one for me. Obviously it didn’t end the way I wanted it to with the cup final defeat but the team has done well this year.

“I have thought about it a lot over the last three to four weeks and I wanted to go out on a high. This was the right time to look somewhere else with new people and new ideas as I didn’t want my career to peter out and just go through the motions.

“I have had a few people contact me but I wanted to give it a few days to think about everything.”

The former Tottenham youth team and football league player has played out the autumn of his career in Essex, representing Grays Athletic, Braintree Town and Thurrock.

But he said Billericay gave him something different, and helped him rediscover his love for the beautiful game.

“When I came to Billericay Town it was about rediscovering my love for the game and I have done that,” he said. “Even the relegation from the Conference South was a good season personally.

“I am so grateful to everyone at the club for what they have done for me and this was a difficult decision. Winning the league and winning two players of the season awards in three seasons were personal highlights but I have had a great time from the start.”

But Poole says he has no plans to hang up his boots just yet, as he targets at least one more year of playing before considering retirement.

“I have life in these legs yet,” he said. “This decision was based purely on playing. This time next year I will be 35 and maybe there will be another decision to be made then. But not now.”