‘So far, so good’ for chairman after Buxton's full-time switch

​The 2024/25 season will be the first time the Bucks have ever operated on a full-time basis, with a large recruitment process having taken place over the summer months under the guidance of new manager John McGrath.

And as the new season gets under way at home to Leamington FC this weekend, Hopkins says it’s been a positive start to the new model.

He said: “It’s very much a case of so far, so good.

"It’s been quite exciting really. The change had numerous connotations in terms of the demographic of the squad and obviously how we operate day-to-day off the field too, but it’s nothing we weren’t expecting.

"A lot of players from last season, whom we might normally have wanted to keep, ended up leaving due to the full-time aspect not suiting them for whatever reason, whether that be related to their current jobs, family life or similar, which is understandable.

"But John has done a fantastic job on the recruitment side of things. He has a great track record of finding and developing young players and that will very much be a focus here too, indeed the average age of the team in some of the friendlies has been as low as 21 at times.

"So it’s very much a transitional stage but the fans seem to be happy with what they’re seeing on and off the pitch.”

On a financial level, Hopkins says the playing budget hasn’t had to alter too much overall, but other plans to improve the infrastructure at the Tarmac Silverlands Stadium will be where funding needs to be focused in the coming months and years.

He said: “There’s lots going on behind the scenes – the logistics of moving from part-time to full-time football can be quite complicated, although in reality the term ‘part-time’ can be a bit of a misnomer nowadays given at a level like this, it’s so much more than that for a lot of people.

"There has been lots to do and there will be a lot more still to do – we have plans in place to improve the stadium and of course we have things to factor in such as housing players who have moved from further away, which we didn’t have to do before, but all in all it’s not affecting the playing budget.”

As was alluded to by Hopkins, the full-time aspect has meant the net can be cast a little further in terms of recruiting players, with many moving from different parts of the country to the High Peak to play their football.

He added: “We can take a lot of the worry that comes with relocating out of it by putting them up in properties we own, which for those lads who don’t have family ties is often much easier.

"But whilst we can pull in players from further afield, we are very keen to continue developing local talent as well and the likes of academy products Dylan Mantle, Sam Tomlinson and Connor Brady have done really well in pre-season.”

Playing a big part in the community continues to be a priority for Hopkins too.

He said: “One of the things about being a full-time club is that you’ve got the ability to get players out in the community when they’re not training or playing, and we’ve been doing that a lot already.

"We had the whole squad up at Buxton Water getting to know the community and sponsors and we’re working with local schools and charities too.

"We’re doing what the town’s football club should do, and the lads are aware of that and enjoying it.”

In terms of ambitions on the pitch, Hopkins remains committed to seeing progress made every season, not necessarily in the form of annual promotions but more in the growth of the club and becoming more established in the top levels of non-league football.

He said: “We’re on a journey and feel that we’re an established National League North club now.

"Of course we’d like to be promoted but you can’t put a timescale on that – as long as we avoid going down, which would obviously be a big hindrance, then we can keep progressing and eventually with the right ingredients we may move higher over time.

"There will be bumps in the road, of course, but the fans understand that and understand the journey we’re on and the fact that Rome wasn’t built in a day.

"The barometer for any club’s success is how the first team is doing and the new manager has settled in well, there’s a great spirit among the squad and we’re excited about the new season ahead.”