It wasn't the plan but when Saffron Walden Town came calling so soon Dan Spinks abandoned the idea of a break and jumped straight into a plot to win the Essex Senior League.

The FA Vase winning boss departed Romford on Friday, May 31, and fully intended spending some time away from football with his family.

Yet by the time the weekend was done, he had landed at Catons Lane as the man to replace outgoing boss Jason Maher.

Spinks said: "I wasn't initially looking to go and get a new job, it wasn't something that I set out to do. 

"I had a meeting with Colin and Steve at Romford and decided I didn’t have the energy or the money to carry on this year. I'm not going to beat around the bush, financially we couldn't really carry on there this year.  

"We shook hands and agreed that my time was done and thanks for everything. It was left on a very good note. 

"I came out of that meeting, they put the statement out that I wouldn't be manager and then my phone started ringing. 

"A couple of times I said no, I'm not interested. Last year was stressful, it was hard for me and it was hard on my family. 

"It was a real strain on all of us so the idea was to have a break. 

"And then Saffron rang and they spoke in the same way that I've always wanted to do. They have the same ambitions that I've always wanted and they offered me a budget I could work with. 

"And now that's the plan. I’m back into it, high energy and I’ve got the buzz back again trying to fill the team."

His time with Boro finished in glorious sunshine on the grandest stage of them all, the 3-0 success over Great Wakering Rovers landing them the FA Vase at Wembley.

And while it was a wrench to leave the east London club, he is throwing himself lock and stock into getting the Bloods promoted.

The boss said: "This is a fresh start and I’ll always be a Romford fan, I will always cheer them on and I will always help Kris [Newby, Boro’s new manager] out and the club whenever I can. 

"But I'm now the Saffron Walden Town manager and my priority is to get them to the top of the league. 

"That's the plan, that's what we want to achieve. 

"We’ll be at it full throttle, whenever I go into something it is always full-blooded, and Jamie the chairman has been excellent, he’s been very easy to work with. 

"When [Romford] came back to the Essex Senior League, Saffron Walden was the club we were looking out for as one that would be right up there.  

"They average about 300 for home games and they get 100 people coming to U18 games. That shows what football means in the area. 

"We want to try and get into step four, the chairman and the board want to get into step four and the facilities are step four facilities. 

"It's a step four club. The plan is to get out of this division this year, although there will be four or five other teams looking for the same thing. 

"It’s going to be another competitive division and I've got a new challenge now, a different challenge.

"This is my job now. I was a fan of Romford but I’m paid to do a job here so the pressure is on a little bit. 

"But I think I’ll succeed and I'm looking forward to it."