IT'S ONE step at a time for new Dagenham and Redbridge manager Garry Hill who has set his sights on taking the club into the Nationwide Conference.

Hill, who steered St. Albans to the semi-finals of the FA Umbro Trophy before making the switch to Victoria Road, has made his intentions clear in his first few weeks at the club.

He said: "It's no secret that Dagenham is a very big club and has the set-up to be a force in the Conference and that is something we have to build towards.

"First we need to get enough points in the Ryman Premier League to get us up there and that is my aim. Hopefully we can do that next season but two years is more realistic.

"I want to freshen up the squad, I'm happy with the core of players I have here but I have my own ideas too.

"Attracting the right players takes time but there will be a lot of League clubs releasing players this summer and it's up to me to try and attract them to Dagenham.

"Up front I am going to fetch in another striker to give Danny Shipp and Paul Cobb a bit of competition. For the past two seasons they have done very well to get a lot of goals and steer clear of injuries but I don't think they have been pushed.

"We need some new faces to lift us a bit in midfield and give us some more quality but I am quite happy with the way we are defensively."

Last week Hill began the first stage of his masterplan, handing free transfers to David Culverhouse and Gary Howard and transfer listing Gary Blackford and Kirk Game.

Former caretaker boss John Bennett is staying with the club as reserve team manager.

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