NEWPORT County AFC assistant manager Jimmy Dack couldn’t be happier that it’s business as usual at Rodney Parade, because he feels manager Justin Edinburgh is building something special.

The Exiles kick a ball in the Football League for the first time in 25 years on Saturday when they host Accrington Stanley in League Two.

And Edinburgh this week revealed that he sees a long-term future for himself at the club and no longer believes the grass is always greener, as he previously did as a fledgling manager.

Luton Town and League One Swindon Town are among the clubs to have cast admiring glances in Edinburgh’s direction, but Dack believes the path to glory could well reside in Newport.

“We are raring to go, we’ve put in a good pre-season, the boys worked hard and we are ready to go now,” said Dack.

“You can train and train, but it doesn’t beat playing games.

“It’s been a massive rise for us from when we came here, it’s happened quickly with a lot of hard work going on, on and off the park and we feel we can go far.

“We want to stay together, we see the potential at this club and the first block was staying in the Conference, then getting out of it and now we want to do well in League Two.

“We set realistic targets but we want to take the club forward and we want to do that over the long-term.”

Dack feels confident that the County squad has been sufficiently strengthened over the summer with Adam Chapman, Chris Zebroski, Jamie Stephens, Ryan Jackson, Harry Worley and James Bittner all added to the ranks so far.

“We are not a big squad, with the new financial fair play ruling, the bigger clubs will always have the biggest squads,” he said.

“But it isn’t always all about money, if you have the right people, the right blend and you are all in it together, that will get you far. Money doesn’t always equate to success.”

Dack insists that the Exiles have no fears about life in the fourth tier of English football.

“The quality is higher, of course, we respect it, but we have no fears. Most of our boys have played at this level,” he said.

“We are going to have some great days here, loads of big clubs, the list is endless, it’s a great season for us as long as we give a good account of ourselves, and we will.

“The players are demanding. They want high intensity, high quality training and that encourages you. They are ready.”