Since the Reds' eighth place finish in the Southern League's Midlands Division a couple of seasons ago, the Byfield Road club has twice narrowly avoided relegation.

So Geordie boss Mason is planning to re-introduce a handful of players who helped the village outfit to make the difficult transition from UCL to Southern League football.

Leading scorers Glen Hawkins and Nicky Gordon shared 39 goals at step four status before going their separate ways with Aylesbury United and Banbury United. Now they will play together again up front at Byfield Road.

Playing alongside them will be old chums Lewis Travers, Chris Jackson and Neil King, a specialist in spectacular goals who has rejoined Woodford from Rugby Town.

Travers and Gordon will both start the season late though on completing coaching spells in the USA.

Central defender Chris Jackson is also on his way back from Hook Norton along with midfield man James Coleman while 'Hooky' striker Ricky Johnson could also put pen to paper after scoring 40 times in two seasons of Hellenic League football.

Meanwhile manager Mason will be hoping that 'Sid' Hawkins makes a similar impact to his first spell at Woodford which resulted in 13 goals, including a hat-trick against Berkhamsted, in his first 13 appearances for the club.

Club captain Aaron Parkinson has also signed on for another season along with goalkeeper Matt Finlay and full back Josh Urquart, who turned down a move to Daventry Town.

"We should be in for a better season and a halfway slot in the Midlands Division looks realistic," said chairman Andy Worrall after the Reds' only escaped relegation last season because Dunstable Town were deducted 13 points for player irregularities.

Another club expecting massive improvements this coming season is Daventry Town whose new manager Ady Fuller, himself an ex-Woodford player and manager, has signed several players with Southern League experience.

Coach Paul Lamb and defender Neil Lazarus have both played for the Reds' as has striker Russell Dunkley who scored 39 times when Woodford clinched the UCL title in the 2005-2006 campaign.

Fuller is also chasing a central defender with an excellent Southern League pedigree whilst accepting that some players will move elsewhere following the decision not to run a reserve side this year. So far though the only defector is midfield player Andy Gordon who lives in Southampton and has decided to play his football in Hampshire.