‘I know we are going to be a target now, but that’s what we want’ – Clanfield boss Lee Blakely after signing EIGHT Moneyfields players

Instead, it’s the culmination of more than a year’s behind-the-scenes work in a bid to transform the culture of the club.

The Hampshire Premier League Senior Division strugglers have signed EIGHT of the squad that had taken Moneys’ second team to the top of the table.

After Moneys waved all the necessary notices of approach, six of them - Owen Haly, Jake Knight, Olly Long, Brandon Elliott and Fred and Dan Penfold - made their debuts in a relegation six-pointer at Liss on Saturday.

A seventh, Michael Viggor, was making his second Clanfield appearance while Jon Kercher completes the Dover Road exodus.

It was certainly an eventful debut for some of the new faces, with Elliott and Viggor both shown straight red cards and Dan Penfold and Long on target as Clanfield hit back from 0-2 down to win 3-2.

It was their first away points of the Senior Division season and allowed them to leapfrog Liss out of the bottom two on goal difference.

Clanfield’s desire to bring in so many new players has understandably raised huge interest in the non league community.

But Blakely said the new additions have not come in purely because Clanfield are in a relegation battle.

‘This isn’t a spur of the moment decision,’ he explained. ‘This is something I’ve been looking at for a year, year and a half.

‘I wanted to bring the players in before but they were committed to Moneyfields.

‘The bond they all had at Moneyfields kept them there - they’d been there three years, they were loyal to the club.’

The landscape dramatically changed, though, when Moneys boss Glenn Turnbull fielded a number of his first team squad in a reserve game against Fleetlands at the beginning of this month.

That kickstarted a chain of events which has led to the former Moneys reserve squad being decimated. In addition to the eight now at Clanfield, Kieran Clark (Fareham Town) and Brandon Rogers (Fleetlands) have also departed.

‘I was surprised to get the call,’ Blakely added of the moment when he was told that so many Moneys reserves were keen on decamping to Clanfield.

‘How can you turn down the chance to sign 70 per cent of the best squad in the league?

‘I don’t think any team in the league would turn down the chance to sign those players. They have proven they can get results in this league.

‘I know we are going to be a target now, but that’s what we want. That means we are doing something right.’

Clanfield’s profile was raised just over a year ago when they started playing home games on the new artificial pitch at Hawks’ Westleigh Park.

Blakely now feels his new signings can provide an equally big onfield boost as they chase their dream of Wessex League football.

‘I feel we have been getting bigger off the field, and now the new lads can help close the gap on it,’ he remarked.

‘We want to show we’re not a soft touch anymore. We want to get bigger.

‘We have a three-year plan (to get to the Wessex League) and hopefully the new players will quicken the process.’

Blakely said the bulk of the ex-Moneys men were always going to start at Liss, even though for most it was their first competitive game for almost a month.

‘They have a proven record, they don’t have to prove anything to me - just keep on doing what they have been doing,’ he said.

‘The new lads nearly lost us the game - some of the discipline was poor - but they also won us the game.

‘That’s the first time that we’ve won ‘ugly’ this season. We had to dig deep with only nine men for the last 15 minutes.’

After Liss had taken an early 2-0 lead, Elliott saw red on his debut after 20 minutes for a late challenge.

Clanfield, though, hit back when Long crossed for Lloyd Williams - switched from centre half to left back after Elliott’s dismissal - to head in.

Dan Penfold levelled before half-time and Long completed the comeback in the second half.

Clanfield ended with nine men after Viggor was sent off for retaliation.

Blakely’s squad have another ‘six pointer’ next weekend against Winchester Castle, who are just one place ahead of Clanfield.

A third successive away trip then follows on December 18 at Liphook.