JASON Ainsley had spent plenty of long, lonely mornings ploughing up the A19 reflecting on what might have been.

After his Spennymoor side missed out on a play-off spot in the dying seconds of the season, Ainsley admits he was a wreck.

Moors beat Southport and were in the end of season shake-up as their season finished. But Bradford Park Avenue still had minutes left of their campaign.

And as Moors eyed a top-six spot, Bradford scored to leapfrog them. Ainsley was in tears, his side falling short after months of toil.

Now he goes again. He’s poached Bradford PA’s top scorer Adam Boyes. Maybe Ainsley will have the last laugh yet.

“The way last season ended was hard,’’ he reflected “It was a shock at first. I was a wreck after the game, horrendous. But the strain of the end of the season – playing Saturday, Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday took it out of everyone physically and mentally.

“The season sort of petered out. We had a brilliant seven – eight months and then it tailed off a bit. Then the last game summed it all up, we thought we had made the play-offs and 30 seconds later we were out of it. It just said everything about us and how the season went.

“Working full-time and I’m driving to work in South Shields every day, it makes for a long time to think about things and it makes you envious of the managers who are full-time who can just have a lie in!’’

There’s no room for rest at the Brewery Field. In the most competitive of divisions, against full-time clubs, with bigger budgets and crowds, Ainsley and his right-hand man Tommy Miller have revamped the squad.

Seven signings have arrived, as some stalwarts such as Dan Lowson and Joe Tait were allowed to move on.

“Teams will always strengthen and there’s a lot of quality sides and full-time clubs too. We had an excellent season last time out, to finish so close to the play-offs like we did and reach the last eight of the FA Trophy.

“Expectations are high now and we want to go on better. We are on a real upward trajectory from the last few years and we don’t just want to maintain our National League North status we want to improve on it.

“There’s a lot of clubs in this division with big budgets, bigger clubs. We lost Salford and Harrogate who were promoted, but there’s Boston, a former Football League club, Southport are full-time and geographically we are in a difficult position.

“We have to pay that bit extra to attract players to the North-East from outside. And then you have to ask if they are so much better than what we have here.

“We have to evolve, a lot of lads have been here a long time and you have to change. The lads who have come in will improve us.

“It’s hard to get people in, every transfer asks questions.’’

He added: “We are gutted to lose Kallum Griffiths, but he’s now at a full-time club in York City. We have to fill that hole.

“Joe Tait is a good lad, and influential here, but needed a fresh start and he’s there too.’’

York boss Martin Gray has stated his aim is to win the title. Ainsley won’t come out with such claims, but is happy for his players to continue to make their mark.

As well as Boyes, Ainsley has landed goalkeeper Matthew Gould, defenders Steven Brogan, Kris Thackray and Rob Atkinson as well as Boyes and fellow attacker Jake Hibbs.

Competing for players with South Shields, Darlington, York and even Gateshead means casting their recruitment net outside the North-East.

Darlington have done the same, it’s all about changing, while remaining competitive.

Ainsley admitted: “The chairman has been brilliant. We have put the club on the map. We have done things right, no egos, and we are a respected club.

“There’s a lot of clubs in the area competing for the same standard, the same calibre of player and that’s why you do have to venture further afield.

“We are all going for the same players in the area and there’s only so many players to go for.

“Darlington have changed under Tommy Wright, then the danger is you lose that continuity and Darlington always have had that continuity and that local feel about them.

“They would grind results out, who is to say they won’t now, but they have had to evolve. They have been like us in that they have had players in the squad for a few years and moved them on. Players stagnate a bit.’’

Moors start at Chester tomorrow, meeting Darlington at home on Tuesday night. It’s some start to the season and Ainsley wouldn’t have it any other way.

He said: “We have a great start to the season, very competitive. We go to Chester in front of a big crowd, who have just appointed two great lads from Salford as mangers, and then straight away it’s Darlington and we have a great record against them lately…… not…. We battered them here last season and lost when Joe Tait scored an own goal!

“Chester have recruited well and they are in a good area to sign players from a big area and with a lot of clubs. Up here we are out on a bit of limb – if lads from Manchester have options round there or here then where are they going to go?’’