The Grays conveyor belt continues

By Pete Oliver

Edinburgh's side are currently ninth in the table

The conveyor belt of talent from Grays Athletic to the Football League is continuing to churn.

Dennis Oli's move to Gillingham and the expected departure of captain Stuart Thurgood down the same route will take the number of players going from Grays to League clubs over the past three years close to double figures.

In the meantime, manager Justin Edinburgh also faces the task of trying to fulfil the ambitions of the club, his chairman and himself.

But the former Tottenham and Portsmouth full-back admits he can have no complaints about losing more of his star players.

"If we had not let Dennis go - and we would have only let him go to a League club - would that have sent out the right message to young players interested in joining us?

"They might have doubted whether we would stop their progression or movement to the League," Edinburgh told BBC Sport.

"We don't want to be known as a breeding club but it works both ways.

To finish in the top eight would be a fantastic achievement Grays manager Justin Edinburgh

"It hurts to lose them but it gives us the chance to entice young players who have been let go or lost their way and who want to push back on.

"Lots of scouts come to our games and rightly so, because in the last 18 months-two years people have progressed."

The Grays' old boy with the current highest profile is Wolves and Wales international striker Freddy Eastwood, although club-mate Michael Kightly is not far behind and his star may not have finished rising yet.

Others to make the leap into the League include Gary Hooper (Southend), Aaron McClean (Peterborough), Glenn Poole (Brentford) and Mitchell Cole (Southend and now Stevenage).

Former Grays manager Mark Stimson returned to Bridge Road to take Oli to Gillingham and midfielder Thurgood is set to follow suit.

As Edinburgh said: "How can I stand in the way of a player who has been so good for the club and captained the club to great success?"

Grays are not a charity and the deal must be right for the club. But they are conscious of their responsibility to players looking to enhance their careers.

"The chairman is very passionate. He wants the best for the club but he is also very thoughtful and cares for the players who play for him," Edinburgh added.

Many of the holes have had to be plugged by previous managers but Edinburgh, who also lost the influential John Martin to Stimson when he was at Stevenage in the summer, is now the one facing the task of continuing to rebuild his team.

"It's been difficult at times but I imagine it is for most managers. If there are obstacles in your way you have to overcome them," he said.

Grays stalwart Stuart Thurgood is set to join Gillingham

Since Stimson ended his stay at Grays in 2006, there appears to have been a near constant turnover in personnel, both on the playing and management side in an effort to sustain the club's success in winning promotion, back-to-back FA Trophies and reaching the Blue Square Premier play-offs at the first attempt.

Chairman Mick Woodward even had a go at managing himself but has now given Edinburgh, 37, close to 11 months in charge, albeit it with a change of his backroom staff earlier this season.

"We have an enthusiastic chairman who wears his heart on his sleeve and who cares for the club," said Edinburgh.

"That enthusiasm can go overboard sometimes but I would rather have that than someone who has no feelings for the team and the club. We have an honest relationship.

"The club has had a lot of success over a short period of time but I think the chairman is realistic and we have got to have some stability.

"We are probably one of the least established sides in the Conference. This is our third year and we have to take stock.

"If you look at most of the teams above us they are either former Football League clubs or have been in the Conference since the day dot or have facilities which allow them to be bigger clubs.

"We are learning along the way. The team is starting to gel. We are a young side, particularly in certain areas.

"Up front we have a lot of young boys who have come out of Conference South but I know they will crack it."

Perhaps not surprisingly Grays have had an up and down season so far but four successive league wins have put them firmly on the front foot.

Edinburgh believes there are 12 teams in the league who would have harboured hopes of winning it.

Realistically Grays would not have been among them but a play-off challenge is a target.

Edinburgh said: "To finish in the top eight would be a fantastic achievement. If we could be in the top ten at the turn of the year we will have a realistic chance of hunting around the pack.

"And I have been in football long enough to know there is always someone who makes a late charge."