Bracknell Town vice-captain Michael Buck admitted that keeping the Robins in the British Gas League Division 1 South & West ‘meant everything’ to him.

Buck, 20, skippered the side to the 1-1 draw at Taunton Town on Saturday.

The point, along with Slough Town’s failure to beat Fleet Town, meant that Bracknell escaped relegation after spending much of the season in and around the drop zone.

“It’s fantastic to stay up,” said Buck.

“On the coach back the mood was a lot better than on the way there when we were all very tense.

“When they (Taunton) came to us, the were one of the better footballing sides we’ve played, but when we went to them they didn’t have much to play for and it was a totally different game.

“It was always going to be tough, though, and we knew we had to get the result at all costs.

“I’ve been here for five years so it’s a club close to my heart and it meant everything to stay up.”

Buck also admitted that it was the travelling Bracknell Town faithful that let the players know they were safe.

“We had an idea in the last five minutes when the fans were chanting ‘we are staying up’ so that gave the lads a great feeling,” he said.

“It was brilliant.”

After former manager John Underwood left the club just before Christmas, Bracknell’s season was thrown into turmoil.

However, the arrival of new manager Byron Walton provided some stability, and although a number of former players were shown the Larges Lane exit door, results gradually began to improve under the new man and the club began climbing up the table.

Just a few weeks ago, Buck was convinced that the Robins were safe, but a run of bad results, culminating in a devastating 4-0 home loss to Gosport Borough, saw them dragged right back into the relegation mire.

“We went through an unsettling patch just before Christmas and it was quite hard to get to grips with, but we knew we had to do what we had to do,” Buck said.

“When we were fivepoints clear I didn’t think it would go down to the last game of the season, but the Gosport game kicked us in the teeth.

“The lads showed great character and it’s credit to them and the management.”