It's been good, the playing side and the club itself are both coming together very nicely and we've all seen major improvements in lots of different areas.

We've seen the addition of Wayne (Hallcro) to the coaching staff, new directors added to the Board plus massive amounts of hard work put into stadium improvements. These are all major positives and show that we're moving in the right direction.

Jimmy and yourself have been busy on the player recruitment front, and the squad at the moment looks very big.

Yes, including new and old players we've signed something like 30 names and each and every one of them will be provided with the opportunity to prove that they are of the standard that we demand in order for us to be a competitive force this season.

By the time the season starts, I expect that number to be reduced to something like 20 to 23. Remember that this year we can name up to 5 substitutes, so we'll be looking for 16 players to be involved on match days. Then when you consider that suspensions and injuries are unfortunately inevitable, then we have to be sure that we have players of the necessary calibre who can come in and do a job when necessary.

How do you intend to keep what we'll call the 'fringe' players happy?

Well, we can't pick everybody but we've got to have competition for places. The players in our squad will be those who want to compete for the right to play for Shepshed Dynamo. If they don't want to compete then they're not right for the club. I fully expect to be loaning out players in order for them to maintain match fitness when they are not in our playing squad.

How do you feel about the F.A. Cup and Trophy draws?

The F.A. Cup has given us home draws, which is all you can ever ask for. Whilst we will totally respect all teams that we face, it has to be said that any home draw is a good draw as it gives us the first bite of the cherry in front of our own supporters.

On the other hand the F.A. Trophy draw away to Skelmersdale is a very difficult draw against a side that will do very well in the UniBond Northern Division. Still, we'll go up there and look to give a good account of ourselves - we will be competitive that is for sure.

The extra prize money on offer must also be an incentive?

Yes, of course it is as we all know what the money situation is at Shepshed, so any extra income from success in the Cup will help no end. Last year I was fortunate enough that when I was manager at Gedling Town we won Â£9,000 in the F.A. Cup and F.A. Vase and I know what a difference that made to that club.

We all dream of winning a bit of cash, however the glory of playing and winning in the world's greatest cup competition must not be forgotten. When I was a player, I couldn't wait for the draw - whether it was in my time as a pro player waiting for the First Round draw or as a semi-pro waiting for the Preliminary Round draw.

We all dream of progressing in the Cup, and whilst there are hundreds of clubs up and down the land that share the dream, we only have to look at the likes of Chasetown and Harrogate Railway who had their time in the spotlight last season.

I'm sure that next season a club from our Division or the Northern Division will make it through to the First Round. Whilst it takes a lot of luck, it could be us. Who knows?

Finally Lee, what are your thoughts on the League fixtures that were announced last week?

It's a difficult start, no doubt about it and we'll need to gel as a team very quickly in order to meet the challenges that they present. But these are going to be great games against good sides - we face the likes of Stamford, Quorn, Lincoln and Stocksbridge early one and they are all going to be tough oppposition with one or two of them likely to be up there at the end of the season.

So we'll need to work hard - we've got players who've got the talent, no doubt about it, we just need to quickly get them to gel. That's my biggest challenge between know and then given that we've little time and opportunity to make that happen.

Thanks for your time Lee, we look forward to your next interview.

If you have any questions for Lee and/or Jimmy, please email them to sd-newsdesk@live.co.uk