Dereham Town manager Matt Henman believes newly-added strength in depth will be the key to a successful 2014/2015 season for his side.

The Magpies' boss added 20-year-old Nathan Howard to his squad in the week and is very happy with the balance of experience and youth within his ranks ahead of their second Ryman Division One North campaign.

Henman said: 'We are really pleased with what we have got here at the club and the way that the squad has been coming together. We looked at certain areas on the pitch where we wanted to add more strength in depth and we have managed to add quality to those areas which is very pleasing for us.

'We have got a really good balance to the squad, we have got both a balance in terms of positions as well as a balance between experience and youth as well, as we have got energy and legs in abundance, as well as experienced leaders on the pitch and in the dressing room.'

'There are obliviously still one or two pieces of the jigsaw for us to complete; we are meeting up with a few of our players over the coming days to finalise paperwork ahead of next season and things are really coming together nicely for us.'

Last week Henman boosted his options by adding former Torquay United midfielder Matt Hockley to his squad as well as Ben Lewis, a left sided-player who joins the Aldiss Park outfit from Ryman North rivals AFC Sudbury.

As well as Luke Tuttle, Olly Willis and Adam Smith resigning for the Magpies, Howard returns for a second spell at the club after two years at Step Five Norwich United.

The frontman participated in Dereham's record-breaking youth team three seasons ago and was also part of the Norfolk County youth outfit which enjoyed national success. So understandably Henman is delighted to have him back.

He told the Dereham Times: 'It was sad to see Nathan Howard leave a couple of years ago, but he is coming back to us having played a good amount of games at Step Five for Norwich United and comes back to us a lot more experienced with a lot more football under his belt.

'Nathan also comes back stronger than when he left us and is ready to hit the ground running with us come the start of the season. He will give us a bit of much-needed physical presence up front and is a player who knows what we are about and we expect. So its a good move all round for us.'