JACK Dunn has called on teammates who are undecided about their Warrington Town future to stay and help Yellows to the Evo-Stik Premier Division title.
Town have already lost midfielder Robbie Evans, who has decided to leave the club and is set to sign for National League North side Curzon Ashton.
> Blow for Warrington Town as midfielder announces departure
Highly sought-after midfielder Ben Garrity and winger Jack Mackreth are among those still considering whether or not to remain at Cantilever Park for the 2019/20 season.
Dunn, who is one of six players to reaffirm their commitment to Paul Carden’s side already, believes Yellows have a serious chance of automatic promotion should the majority of their squad remain together.
“I think we can win it,” he said.
“We had a fresh set of lads who’d never played with each other before at the start of last season.
“We were still getting to know each other but once we gelled, you could see how strong we were.
“If we keep most of our squad together, I’m confident we’ve got a good chance of winning it.
“You can see how talented the likes of Ben (Garrity) and the rest of them are.
“They bring so much to our team and they are capable of playing higher, but I personally hope they stay with us.”
The upcoming pre-season will be a big one for Dunn – an England under 19 international who joined the club from Tranmere Rovers a year ago.
He showed glimpses of the quality he could bring in pre-season, but niggling injuries and the red-hot form of the likes of Mackreth and Dylan Vassallo meant he struggled for game time in the campaign’s early stages.
A loan spell at Evo-Stik Division One West outfit Widnes followed as the former Liverpool trainee searched for fitness and form.
When he came back, he showed just how valuable he could be, scoring seven goals and playing a big part in the team’s run to the brink of promotion.
Jack Dunn scores in the league victory at South Shields in February. Picture by John Hopkins
“I really enjoyed last season – I was getting the enjoyment back in my football,” the 24-year-old said.
“When Cards (Paul Carden) was speaking to me about next season, I was pretty much set on coming back.
“I came here off the back of a disappointing time at Tranmere. I didn’t feel like myself and I fell out of love with football.
“Once I started to meet the lads and get stuck into pre-season, I started enjoying the game more.
“It took me a while to adjust to dropping down to part-time football.
“Cards was great with me – he knew I had to get out and play games.
“The team was doing really well without me and I couldn’t get in. I didn’t expect the gaffer to change it.
“I spoke with him about going on loan to get a few games in and he was on board with it.
“He didn’t have to do that – he could have said he needed me – but he understood.
“With every game I played, I felt more like myself again.”
Having made the left-wing spot his own, Dunn came up with vital goals and assists as Town pushed eventual league champions Farsley Celtic all the way.
When the play-offs became their prescribed route to promotion, he stepped up again to provide three assists in the 4-1 semi-final victory over Nantwich Town.
However, in the divisional final at South Shields, disaster struck.
A stomach injury forced him off in the first half and once replacement Vassallo had put Town on course to recording a memorable 2-1 victory, the race was on for Dunn to get fit for the ‘super play-off’ against King’s Lynn Town the following week.
Dunn succumbed to a stomach injury at South Shields. Picture by John Hopkins
He was given as much time as possible but failed a fitness test on the day of the game, forcing him to watch Yellows’ heart-breaking 3-2 defeat from the sidelines.
“I couldn’t help thinking if I could have added that something extra that would have got us over the line,” he said.
“When you look at games from the outside, you can see different things and think about what you could do about them.
“I was gutted – we’d got through so much to get to that final and I thought we were good enough to beat them.
“The lads were capable of winning without me but on the day, King’s Lynn were the better side.
“With the way the season ended, I’m chomping at the bit to get going again.”
Dunn, third from right, and his teammates reflect on the defeat to King's Lynn Town. Picture by Mike Boden
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