‘They’ve done lots for me – I felt I owed them this as a bit of gratitude’ – talisman striker Steve Hutchings on staying loyal to Moneyfields

But he says committing to the club he first joined in 2011 was the 'hardest' and the 'easiest' decision of his football career.

The former AFC Bournemouth and Hawks striker watched on while nearly all of his Moneys team-mates from last term followed ex-boss Dave Carter to Wessex League Premier Division rivals AFC Portchester this summer.

Carter had also been hopeful of tempting Hutchings into making the move to The Crest Finance Stadium; however, he stayed put and is fast approaching a decade at Dover Road.

First brought to Moneyfields by current Chichester City manager Miles Rutherford and assistant Graeme Gee after club stalwart Louis Savage had approached him, the 30-year-old forward has become an integral part of the Portsmouth-based side.

Just a quick glance at Hutchings' scoring stats - 231 goals in 314 appearances - show how crucial he has been and is sure to continue to be under new manager Glenn Turnbull.

And the prolific striker says there is no club he would rather be at for the forthcoming campaign as he prepares for season number 10 with Moneyfields.

Hutchings said: 'Basically, I just feel like part of the furniture now, really.

‘When Miles and Graeme left it was more about the money as to why I stayed.

‘Dave (Carter) came in and had a big budget so when he (Rutherford) left it was about the money, but now I’ve been here 10 years and I’ve got everything I need financially so I’m not really playing for the money.

‘I’m playing for the enjoyment at the minute and, loyal as a dog, I’m staying with Moneyfields.

‘I think I owe it to them as a club, I’ve been there 10 years now, they’ve done lots for me in the past, so I felt like I owed them this as a bit of gratitude.

‘It was probably one of the biggest decisions I’ve had in football, to be fair (staying with Moneyfields).

‘Obviously all the team (from last season), I’ve played with some of them for 10 years, it was a tough decision, but as well as it being a tough decision it was also an easy decision for me to stay, really.'

It seems almost every season there is speculation over where Hutchings might head should he move away from Dover Road.

But he revealed the closest he has come to leaving the club was linking up with Rutherford and Gee at Chichester after they took on management roles at the Oaklands Park club in autumn 2015.

After all, it was the Chi manager and assistant duo who handed Hutchings a chance to get back into the game he had become disillusioned with after leaving AFC Bournemouth and spending some time at Hawks under current Gosport Borough manager Shaun Gale.

‘It was probably when Miles and Graeme left (closest to leaving Moneyfields),' revealed Hutchings.

‘Miles and Graeme brought me into the club, along with Louis Savage, back in 2011.

‘I fell out of love with football and gave the whole game up, but as I came in and worked with them and played for them I really enjoyed it.

‘Without Miles and Graeme I shouldn’t think I’d be where I am today, to be fair, so that was probably the hardest decision staying at Moneyfields when they left because they’d given me so much.

‘Again, I was disinterested (at Hawks) - I liked all the boys because I’ve fitted in everywhere I’ve gone, really - I can fit in in most places.

‘I didn’t really get on with the manager, partly my fault for not turning up and not telling them where I was, so I can understand why I was getting dropped.

‘I just had enough after that, didn’t want to play anymore, completely fell out of love with the game and had a year out and went to Moneyfields.

‘I was just so disinterested in the game, I wasn’t enjoying anything I was doing, football was just a burden in my life with all my friends doing things like events, festivals and holidays, football just stood in the way of that.

‘I came back a year later and I’ve never really looked back.'

Hutchings is preparing for a first season back at step 5 level since 2016-17 when Moneyfields won promotion to the Southern League for the first time.

As part of the FA's non-league restructure this summer, Moneys opted to take voluntary relegation.

It means Hutchings will line up back in the Wessex League Premier this term with a new manager in Turnbull and a number of new faces as team-mates.

But he insists the pressure will be off them this season, with ongoing work on the redevelopment of Dover Road to contend with as well.

Hutchings said: ‘I know most of the boys (coming to Moneys) and I know Glenn (Turnbull) because he was in and around Moneyfields when both of the other managers were there.

‘I’ve known Glenn for a while, he knows his stuff, he demands hard work and to be fair that’s why they probably did so well with US Portsmouth because he’s strict and he doesn’t take any rubbish.

‘If you’re not performing, not running, then he’ll ask questions.

‘This season, where everything is up in the air, the new ground being built, really this is a season of fun and then the business really starts when the new ground is here next season.

‘There are three or four teams in the league who the pressure is completely on so it suits us flying under the radar We’ll go and have fun, enjoy it, get to know each other for a season and the real hard work starts when the new ground is here.'