St Albans City winger Lee Chappell has backed the Saints to overachieve again next season after signing up for another year at Clarence Park.

The 29-year-old became one of eight players to agree a new contract with the Conference South side over the weekend, with Joe Welch, Sam Corcoran, Omar Beckles, Danny Green, John Kyriacou, Darren Locke and Simon Thomas all following suit.

And after putting pen-to-paper on a third year with the Saints, Chappell says he expects another season of the club punching above their weight.

“I know Jimmy (joint-manager James Gray) often mentions our budget but we did overachieve last year and I expect we will again next year,” said Chappell.

“Some of the players in that changing room should be at a higher level, there is no doubt about it,” he continued. “Sometimes though, we have a tendency to switch off but if we can sort that out then we will do better next year.

“I know pre-season will be a bit different this year because it will be more focused on the mental side of the things as well as the body.”

The Saints ended their first season at step two in 13th place after winning promotion from the Southern Premier Division via the play-off final 12 months ago, with four consecutive wins bringing the curtain down on the season in fine style.

In fact, St Albans were closer to the play-off places than the relegation zone, largely thanks to an impressive record in front of their own supporters which saw them win 31 of their 54 points.

And after a year in Conference South, Chappell believes the Saints are already closing the gap on those sides who have been in the division for a prolonged period.

He said: “The step up was not too bad. We only really struggled over Christmas when we had a game every three days and suffered a few injuries.

“I know one or two were looking over their shoulders at Christmas time – mostly fans – and thinking we did not have enough points on the board but it ended up being a successful season.

“Teams at this level are a lot more structured; they come with a game plan rather than relying on one or two star players. We knew we could not just rely on John Frendo.”

He continued: “Ebbsfleet United were full time and you could just tell – not only in terms of fitness – but they were well organised and everyone knew what they were doing on set pieces.

“We need to be a bit more solid; no-one really battered us but there were a lot of 1-0 losses last season so it is a case of kicking those and closing the fine margins.”

Chappell joined the Saints from Conference South rivals Wealdstone in the summer of 2013 and after the Stones won the Isthmian Premier Division title 12 months later, the player came up against the side for whom he made more than 350 appearances.

“I never saw myself playing against them,” he admitted. “So it was a bit weird but I loved my time there and I still speak to (manager) Gordon Bartlett and (goalkeeper) Jonathan North so we have a little bit of banter between us. I just did not want to see them get relegated.”

For Chappell there is one clear difference between step two and three though, and it is one which the four-goal wideman believes is preventing the Saints from truly pushing on to bigger and better things next time around.

“If you can take one chance every couple rather than scoring every five or six then we will really do well,” he said. “If we can add perhaps ten points next season then we may be looking at the play-offs instead.”