Needham Market boss Mark Morsley says Suffolk football is benefitting from clubs’ continuity – on and off the pitch.

The Ryman Premier League has four Suffolk teams in it this season – Needham, Leiston, Lowestoft and AFC Sudbury – all doing well, with Needham and Leiston pushing for promotion to Conference South.

The Ryman Premier is Step 3 of the football pyramid and a very high standard of non-league football indeed. It requires huge player commitment and a very business-like operation off the field.

“It’s fantastic what is going on in Suffolk football right now,” Morsley said.

“I think clubs are benefitting from years of continuity. At Needham, I came back a few years ago and not a great deal has changed.

“Danny Laws was the manager for seven or eight years.

“At Leiston and Sudbury they have players who have been there a while, know the club – away from the pitch too, people who know their clubs’ inside out.

“Four good Suffolk clubs, just imagine if there was only one major non-league Suffolk team? Think of the choice of players there would be, because we are all fishing from the same pool.”

Needham are currently in second place in Ryman Premier and on Saturday entertain mid-table Kingstonian – a team they beat earlier in the season in Surrey.

A fine win at Havant & Waterlooville last weekend has buoyed everyone at Bloomfields and Morsley is looking for his team to back that superb victory up with victory on Saturday.

“We played really well against Bognor (lost 1-2) and then beat Havant. The look on the boys’ faces at Bognor told it’s own story,” Morsley said.

“When I saw how gutted they were, it said a lot.

“There’s a good thing going on in this changing room right now. Don’t know what it is and you can’t buy it, but it is a good vibe.”

Needham had played more games than clubs around them just six weeks ago, but that has changed now as other teams have played a bit of catch up.

Still, however Needham find themselves in second place in the table.