SHEPTON Mallet manager Craig Loxton has expressed his satisfaction with the club’s encouraging start to the season, highlighting a newfound "defensive resilience" as the key to their early success,.

The club opened their campaign with three consecutive wins and three clean sheets, including a hard-fought 1-0 victory away at Liskeard Athletic and a dominant 2-0 triumph over Sidmouth Town.

Loxton described the win against Sidmouth, which featured goals from new striker Harry Warwick and Ethan Cannings, as the most pleasing all-round performance of the season so far.

Talking to the Jewson Western League Podcast, Loxton said: "The emphasis we put to the players was that we need to prioritise clean sheets," noting that while the team scored regularly last season, they also conceded too many goals.

"If we can shore that up, we’ll have a real opportunity to get a lot of points".

Despite the strong start, Shepton recently suffered their first setback: a narrow 1-0 defeat to Wells City in the Mendip derby.

A goal in the 93rd minute ended their perfect defensive run in a game Loxton felt deserved to end in a draw.

Regarding long-term aspirations, Loxton acknowledged that the squad is in a "rebuild" phase after adding several new players. While he maintains high ambitions, he remains pragmatic about the competitive nature of the league,

"If we can improve on last season and push into the top 10, that would be massive progress for me," he explained.

For Loxton, the role is deeply personal, having returned to the dugout following a spell at Frome.

"Shepton is my club," he added. "I want to get it back to the position it was in when I previously left in 2022".

The full interview can be found on episode 2 of this season’s Jewson Western League Podcast.