Pritchard excited to be joining United

Harry Pritchard finally brought to an end a whirlwind few months last Thursday night when he put pen to paper and signed on the dotted line for Maidenhead United.

The young left winger had become one of the most sought-after talents in the area following several impressive performances for Southern Central Division side Burnham in recent weeks.

The likes of Slough Town, Wealdstone and Hayes & Yeading were all hoping to snap up the 19-year-old but in the end he chose to make the short move to York Road.

The decision brought to an end a period of much uncertainty for Pritchard who just three months ago was playing in the Hellenic Premier Division for Flackwell Heath.

But with that all now behind him, the ambitious attacker says he can’t wait to try and make his mark in the Conference South.

He said: “I’m really excited for the future. I played in a friendly for Maidenhead against Aldershot Town Reserves a couple of weeks back and really enjoyed it.

“I spoke to Drax (Johnson Hippolyte - Maidenhead manager) afterwards and he said he was interested in signing me.

“Maidenhead are a good club and the Conference South is a good league to play in so it wasn’t a very hard decision to make.

“I spoke to people like Ashley Smith and he told me it was a really good club, one of the best around.”

Just as he was about to sign for the Magpies, Pritchard was suddenly told of some late interest from Blue Square Premier sides Tamworth and Cambridge United.

“I had a phone call just before saying Tamworth and Cambridge were interested,” he said. “But by then I already had my sights on Maidenhead.

“I’ve already been training there and everyone has been great. The atmosphere is good and the banter is good between the lads.”

* For the full version of this story, see this week's Advertiser.