Maldon and Tiptree assistant manager Mark Levey expects Ryman League division north to be an even tougher division to master, next season.

But the Jammers number two insists their target remains the same as last year – to land the championship crown.

Kevin Horlock’s side finished as runners-up last season and agonisingly missed out on promotion to the Ryman Premier after losing out in the play-off final to Thurrock at Park Drive, having led the division for much of the season.

It promises to be a competitive division again next time around, with the Jammers hoping to go one better than the previous campaign and secure promotion – by winning the league.

Levey said: “Kevin and I are well and truly up for the challenge.

“Our main target is the same as it was this time, last year – to win the league.

“We won’t go away from that and that will be our objective.

“In addition to that, I think the owners would like us to win more games in the FA Cup and FA Trophy competitions.

“I think the division will be harder, this year.

“We’ll be competing against some good quality clubs who were relegated from Ryman Premier, last season like Grays Athletic, AFC Sudbury and Canvey Island, while the likes of AFC Hornchurch are still in our division.

“In my opinion, there’s a better spread of quality players, this time around.”

Levey acknowledges that Maldon must improve their away form, if they are to win the title.

The Jammers won an impressive 20 games at Park Drive last season and boasted the best home record in the division but were beaten 11 times on their travels.

Levey said: “We lost too many games away from home last season and that was ultimately our downfall.”

Maldon are busy reshaping their squad for next season and are set to announce new signings in the coming weeks.

Their squad will be very different to the one that competed last season, although the likes of Gavin Greenfield and Curtis Haynes-Brown remain at the club.

“The squad building is well underway and we’re feeling confident with the way that it’s going so far,” added Levey.

“A lot of our recruitment is done with players being released by pro clubs and with their contracts expiring on June 30 and there’s plenty going on behind the scenes.”