Former professional Simeon Jackson admitted he was ‘itching at the bit’ to join up with AFC Sudbury boss Marc Abbott to attempt to help the Yellows to safety in the Pitching In Southern League Premier Central.
In a transfer coup for the club, the former Premier League striker came out of retirement to sign for Sudbury with his arrival announced last Wednesday.
But he has a big task on his hands after Abbott’s side, who occupy the final relegation spot with four games to go, have been left seven points from safety after their 3-0 defeat at table-topping Needham Market on Monday was then compounded by Hitchin Town’s 2-1 victory at already-relegated Berkhamsted.
Jackson, who has just turned 37, started at Bloomfields and the Yellows’ 4-2 loss at home to St Ives Town on Saturday, revealed his move to The MEL Group Stadium was a quick one, as he was in training last Tuesday after receiving a call from the Sudbury boss on the Monday.
“I was itching at the bit. I felt okay fitness-wise and said I’d give it a go. It didn’t take long and within five or 10 minutes that was it, I was signed,” he said after Monday’s defeat.
“I’m just trying to make sure I can help us as best as I can to make sure we can keep this club in the league. He (Abbott) said to dive in and grab it with both hands and help the lads as best I can.
“There’s some good young players here, a few boys on loan from decent clubs, so it’s trying to muck in with everyone as quickly as possible.”
The former Canadian international is best known for his promotion-winning spells at Norwich City and Gillingham. He helped fire the Canaries up to the Premier League in 2010/11 and The Gills to League One in 2008/09.
His spell at Norwich saw him score four goals from 35 appearances (15 starts) across two seasons in the Premier League from 2011/12 with his departure from Carrow Road taking him to the Bundesliga to for a short spell with Eintracht Braunschweig. He also went on to play in the Sottish Premiership for both St Mirren and Kilmarnock.
Jackson, who has 49 caps and six goals for Canada, had stepped back from playing at Chelmsford City last summer to focus on his role as an under-18s coach at the Step 2 club, which he will continue during his spell in Suffolk.
He had ended the previous two seasons as The Clarets’ top scorer in the Vanarama National League South in a spell which saw him scoring 20 times in 68 appearances from February 2021.
Speaking on Sudbury’s position in the table, Jackson said: “There’s obviously disappointment (in the dressing room) but there’s no time to dwell on it really.
“We’re going to have to come in (to training) on Thursday, dust down, make sure our minds are right and fix what we need to fix going into Saturday. Four big games left.
“It was a tough game (on Monday against Needham). I thought they were consistent and solid at what they do.
“Obviously there’s no surprise they are where they are in the league and they showed that.
“For us, we need to tidy up on certain things in certain areas and manage games a bit better. But we’ve got to move on.”
The striker said he is hoping Sudbury can ‘end the season on a high’.
“That’s two games now for me, back-to-back games to get a feel for everything. Hopefully we can get it right in these last four games.
“It’s a good group who mean well. We do try and play, and play the game the right way. It’s just little things we need to adjust and make sure we fix.
“But it’s a really good group and hopefully we can get the job done.”
