It smells like team spirit at The Wong

Manager Mickey Stones wants Horncastle Town’s squad to become even closer on and off the pitch, and he is enlisting his new skipper to help out.

Brown was handed the armband after Chris Johnson hung up his boots this summer.

“We needed a change of captain as Chris Johnson stepped down after 12 years,” Stones said.

“We could have given it to five or six people in the team, several players who have been at the club a long time, since junior level.

“But Browny edged it. He’s a Horncastle lad.

“When we spoke to him we said we wanted him to improve the social side of things really.

“We want the lads to do things together a bit more.”

A couple of team bonding days out have already been put in the club’s diary as Stones looks to make the football club a focal point of his players’ lives.

“It’s a different time now in local football,” Stones told The News.

“Sometimes we have to tell the lads to stay for a drink after the game. If we didn’t I think some would happily just go straight home after.

“People have a lot more going on in their lives these days, not just football.

“We’ve got a good team spirit but I think we can still improve that and bring the lads a bit closer together.”

The Wongers will play all their pre-season friendlies on Friday evenings this summer, freeing up Saturdays for players as well as pencilling in those days out.

“Last year we didn’t have anyone who played every game of the season,” Stones continued.

“Ten years ago there would probably be a lot of lads who played every game. It just shows that people have other things going on these days.

“It might be the way forward in local football, playing on a Friday night and giving everyone their weekends.

“We’ll see how it works out this year.”