New signing Paul Malone has described his return to the Rockingham Triangle as a 'dream'.

Paul was all set to remain with Stamford until the end of the season, after turning down a move to Kings Lynn last month, however a return to his hometown club was deemed too good to turn down by the young defender.

In an exclusive interview with corbytownfc.co.uk Paul told us: "At the moment it just doesn't feel real, it's like a dream.

"The whole transfer has been a bit of a blur to be honest, I didn't have any idea that it was going to happen. I thought I would be a Stamford player until at least the end of the season however this move just developed so quickly and I am buzzing to be back at Corby.

"I left the Rockingham Triangle a few years ago and always had the ambition to return one day. I have progressed as a player since leaving, however the club has progressed a lot too, which meant I had to work even harder to be able to fulfill my ambition of returning.

"The new stadium looks brilliant and the future of the club looks bright, I want to be a part of that. There is nothing I would enjoy more then being part of a successful Corby Town team in front of the supporters in that new ground. I am itching to walk out onto the new pitch at the start of next year already."

After leading S&L Corby's defence during their title winning UCL campaign, followed by an impressive two-year spell Stamford in the Southern League Malone has been attracting the attentions of some big clubs, with many expecting him to join Kings Lynn after they had a bid accepted last month.

"Kings Lynn are a big club and obviously they have a huge fan base and at the time had a good chance of playing at Wembley in The FA Vase. It could have been a nice little move, but I decided against it as I didn't want to drop back down to the UCL. No disrespect to Kings Lynn or the United Counties League, but I feel as though I have played my part in that league and don't want to go back there for a long time."

Paul was formerly the captain of the most successful Corby Town U18 side in decades, leading the Steelboys not only to the title, but also on an impressive FA Youth Cup run which ironically ended at the hands of Luton Town – who knocked the Steelmen out of this season's senior competition - at Kenilworth Road. He has grown up in the town and attended Lodge Park Technology College.

"Being a Corby lad make it even better to be at this club. Playing for any club at this level would have been a great achievement for me as well as a massive opportunity, but to be able to play for my hometown is just the icing on the cake.

"There has been a lack of local talent in the Corby side for years, but I hope that I can be the first of many to start making the step-up. There are a lot of talented footballers in the town, but you need to have the right attitude and commitment to improve to reach this level.

"I do a lot of coaching in the town and see a lot of young players who are outstanding. It is just about guiding them in the right way and hopefully they can progress to be the Steelmen stars of the next generation."

It was a tough decision for the young centre-back to leave the Daniels after the faith they have shown in him over the past two years at the club, but Paul has no doubts that he has made the right choice.

"Stamford have been great to me, throughout the two seasons they have looked after me, made people aware of my progress, kept my head down and advised me through my choices.

"I would recommend them to any youngster as they play at a good level, have good coaches and its a great club to be at, but for me I knew I had to move up the ladder again to challenge myself.

"It wasn't easy leaving Stamford, but to come back home to Corby Town, I couldn't wish for anything else."