By Brian Bennett | Photo: Ian Brodie
Jake Orrell said at the weekend that he is looking for a fresh start and is ‘buzzing’ about signing for Ashington.
The midfielder – who will turn 28 later this month – put pen to paper last week after joining the Woodhorn Lane set up following a spell of five years with fellow Northern Premier League East Division side Consett.
Orrell – who lists Blyth Spartans, Spennymoor Town, Hartlepool and Chesterfield amongst his former clubs – said: “Ashington have always looked like a good club from the outside so I’m excited about the start of the season – in fact I’m buzzing to be fair. I’ve had a couple of seasons now where to be honest I haven’t really enjoyed my football as much so it’s a case of pressing the reset button. Consett weren’t getting the best out of me and I wasn’t performing as well as what I could which was frustrating. Consequently, I’m looking for a fresh start. I’ve worked with the manager Nick Gray before when I was on-loan at Morpeth Town from Spennymoor and he’s a good bloke. He showed plenty of interest in wanting to sign me and that was good enough.”
For non-league players, the opportunity of playing on the hallowed turf at Wembley Stadium would rank as being the distinct highlight of their career. Orrell was no different after Consett reached the final of the FA Vase in the 2019/20 campaign.
The showpiece was against Hebburn Town but was deferred until May 2021 due to COVID.
Gateshead-born Orrell was hoping to savour the occasion – but unfortunately things didn’t quite pan out the way he had dreamt about as he recalls: “We were winning the game but 20 minutes into the contest, I went up for a header, got an elbow to the head and was knocked out. I was stretchered off – it was the first time I had ever been knocked out and of all places it was at Wembley!” Hebburn went on to win the game 3-2.
However, Washington-based Orrell – who runs his own barber shop- added: “The occasion itself was mint from driving in then going into the changing rooms where the Consett logo was on the floor. We also had our names on the back of our tops – it was class. However, the worst thing about it all was that because it was during COVID, there were no fans allowed and my wife and all of my family were watching it at home.”
Ashington manager Nick Gray said: “The squad is slowly and surely coming together and I’m really happy with the signings. I knew a couple of weeks ago that there was a possibility that we could get Jake onboard. I pursued it and Consett – through their chairman Frank Bell – were very good about it. Once I met Jake, we were both on the same page and he was looking to recharge his batteries and looking for a fresh start.”
He continued: “I had Jake on loan at Morpeth when he was at Spennymoor. He’s a very creative midfield player with the ability of making that final pass in the final third and has an eye for goal. I think we lacked a bit of creativity in midfield last season, and he’ll certainly add that. He wants to get on the ball and be brave and I know he will become a crowd favourite.”