When Paul Harkness came off the bench to score the title-winning goal against Windsor & Eton in front of the Prospect Road End, he confirmed his place in Farnborough folklore.

A veteran of six seasons at Cherrywood Road, he is very much a fans’ favourite and that strike only added to his hero status.

So it will come as good news for Boro supporters that on Tuesday the experienced striker agreed to stay on for his seventh consecutive campaign as the club look to build on last season’s glorious promotion that began the long road back to the Conference.

Other than a brief spell at Basingstoke Town at the start of the last campaign, whom he joined when Farnborough Town folded that summer, the 29-year-old forward has been totally committed to Boro’s cause.

After clocking up 167 appearances and 35 goals, Harkness told the Mail he did not hesitate when offered the chance to stay with Francis Vines’ revamped squad for the coming campaign, and added that he wants to remain at ‘his’ club for the rest of his career.

“To be honest the conversation took about ten seconds,” he joked. “Francis asked if wanted to stay, I said yes, and that was the end of it.

“A deal still needs to be finalised but I know the club will sort that out. I don’t want to go anywhere and if Farnborough wanted me I was always going to stay.

“It’s my club, I’m at home here, and I don’t envisage ever playing for any other club. I’m happy here and I just want to be a part of the progress that we are making.

“I love the club and the supporters and it really is just  great to be here.”

Following on from Boro’s fantastic promotion last season, winning the BGB Southern 1 South & West title at the first time of asking, it has been another summer of upheaval at Cherrywood Road.

But in stark contrast to previous years, the changes have all been positive.

Vines has taken charge of a confident young side, looking to carry on what former boss Andy Clement began. The buzz of excitement around the club from the championship glory has been maintained, and Harkness said he was delighted with the appointment of the experienced non-league manager.

“Francis signed me for Basingstoke at the start of last season and I have known him for a long time,” he said. “I have played against his sides a lot of times in the past, and even last year when I had left Basingstoke I was in regular contact with him.

“I really regard him as a friend as well as a manager. He has so much energy and enthusiasm and that transfers to the players.

“I just can’t wait to get going and I feel like I have a new found energy for this season. I’m looking forward to pre-season and the club is an exciting place to be at the moment, which is a refreshing change from times in the past.

“It’s buzzing and that is due in part to Francis, and of course to last season when we won the league. Success can breed more success and we have to carry that on.”

Vines has certainly been busy in the transfer market, adding six new players to the squad for their assault on the BGB Southern Premier, and has indicated that there may still be more to come.

The majority of these players have age on their side, like 21-year-old striker Michael Charles, despite most dropping down from higher levels, and their arrival has added to the youthful feel of the side.

At 29, Harkness is one of the oldest members of the squad, and while insisting that he can still cut it with the kids, he felt that his experience is going to play a vital role in a side going for back-to-back promotions.

“It’s a young squad and I’m sure one of the reasons that I have been kept on is to add some experience to the side,” he said. “I’m still only 29 myself and have some good years left in me, but in terms of our squad I am one of the most experienced guys.

“It’s great to have a young squad, because you have that energy and hunger, but at the same time when you play youngsters they do made mistakes and you also need that experience to calm things down.

“With myself and Dave Woozley, and I include Steve Laidler as well, we have that and it can be an important influence on the side. We now have a great blend of youth and experience and that is a recipe for success.”

Some of Vines’ new signings have certainly made others sit up and take notice, not least the arrival ex-Aldershot Town star Ryan Scott, and former Boro players Charles and Laidler.

All have dropped down to play for Farnborough, in the belief that the club is going forward and they will soon be back in the Conference. Harkness too is in no doubt that the club is heading rapidly in the right direction, under the guidance of new chairman Simon Hollis.

“The quality of the signings so far, and the way the ground development is going makes me sure we can get back-to-back promotions,” he enthused. “The signings have been really impressive. People like Ryan Scott show the appeal of playing for Farnborough and it’s a testament to both Francis and Simon really.

“There has been a lot of talk and we have a good side of course, but it’s now up to the players to get on and do the business on the pitch.

“It’s fine to make these great signings, but now we have to deliver.”

Harkness added that he was keen to enjoy a run in the FA Cup with Boro. He missed perhaps the biggest game in Farnborough Town’s history when they took on Premiership giants Arsenal at Highbury in the FA Cup third round back in January 2003, joining the club a month later.

“I’d also love to have a good FA Cup run,” he said. “I missed out when we played Arsenal and it would be great to get another chance.”

Familiar faces are back at Boro in the form of Charles and Laidler, team-mates of Harkness in Farnborough Town’s last season, when they defied the odds, including a ten-point deduction, to finish 11th in the Conference South.

Harkness said that he was pleased to see the duo back at the club, and in particular was looking forward to renewing a successful partnership up front with Charles.

“It’s nice to see these players coming back,” he said. “Off the pitch I see Charlesy a lot and we are good friends.

“When we played together two seasons ago we had a great partnership and scored about 35 goals between us.

“I live about ten doors down the road from Steve so I still see a lot of him as well. We used to travel together to games.

“Both of them are good players and it will be great to link up with them again.”

Looking back on what proved to be a rollercoaster season for both the club and the player, Harkness admitted it had been a one of his strangest.

He spent two months in hospital at the start of 2008 after being diagnosed with Crohn’s Disease, and at his lowest wondered if he would play any part in Boro’s title push.

But in a fitting end to both his and Boro’s year, he battled back to full fitness, climbing off the bench to score the crucial goal in a moment he knows he will never forget.

“Last year was a strange one for me personally, but a great one for the club,” he said. “But it was a fantastic feeling to score the goal against Windsor, after all my problems with illness, and I won’t ever forget it. I loved being a part of it.

“It was not my best goal for the club, but definitely my most important.

“The club really looked after me, although because of my illness I did wonder if I would be offered the chance to stay for next season.

“But both Simon and Francis told me it’s not just for footballing reasons that they want me to stay, which is great for me.

“I enjoyed coaching the youth team at the end of last season and I’m looking forward to being involved again next season.

“Most of all I just can’t wait for the season to start, and I’m confident it will be another good one.”