New Bury Town midfielder Bradley Barber admitted the chance to play in the Ryman League again was too good to turn down, after leaving Thurlow Nunn Premier Division side Felixstowe & Walton United.

The 28-year-old has been snapped up by Blues boss Ben Chenery after coming to the end of his two-year deal at the Goldstar Ground, and is keen to try and get Town in promotion contention for an immediate return to the Ryman Premier.

Barber, whose brother Rhys plays for Felixstowe, had Ryman League experience at Needham Market and is pleased to be back at that level.

“I want to step back up again and unfortunately, for the foreseeable future, I don’t think Felixstowe will be applying to go up,” said Barber.

“I want to have one last crack at it, I am moving towards 30 so I would maybe like a couple more years there and then see what happens.”

Barber is joining a team that is rebuilding after a dismal 2014-15 season that saw them finish bottom of Ryman Premier and 20 points adrift of safety.

Despite that, Barber had no hesitation in joining Ben Chenery’s squad and is confident of better times ahead at the west Suffolk club.

“I don’t think Bury is a club that is still in decline and we won’t just be looking to be satisfied with a mid-table finish, we want promotion to be on the cards,” he added.

“When you look at the population of the town, the size of Bury St Edmunds and the club’s fan base, Bury should be probably looking to be as big a team as Lowestoft Town.”

Barber scored 12 goals in 45 games for the Seasiders last season as Kev O’Donnell’s side finished fifth in the Thurlow Nunn Premier and the midfielder is looking to hit a similar vein of form for his new club come August.

“As a midfielder you have got to be looking at 15 goals as a benchmark and hopefully I can do that,” explained Barber.

“I am looking forward to the new season. I played against Ben (Chenery) in the past, he has played in the pro game and he seems to be a good, well-organised manager.

“The division is going to be a hard-fought one next season with the likes of AFC Sudbury, Dereham and Wroxham and it is getting back to what the old Jewson League used to be like.”

Meanwhile, Felixstowe & Walton have appointed former Felixstowe Harpers boss Ian Watson as assistant manager at the club.