GLENN Burnett is desperate for his legacy to have been helping preserve New Milton’s Wessex Premier status after stepping down as manager at Fawcett’s Field.

Burnett, who took the reins when Linnets were marooned at the foot of the table in September, made his decision following talks with the club’s committee over the weekend.

The 38-year-old took charge for the final time on Saturday when New Milton threw themselves a relegation lifeline after coming from 3-0 down to draw 3-3 at Hayling United.

However, although a share of the points saw them climb out of the bottom two, only victory for Hamworthy United at struggling Brading on Thursday will see Linnets remain in the top flight.

Burnett, a qualified UEFA B coach, enjoyed a successful spell as manager of Romsey and moved to New Milton after starting the season on the coaching staff at Blackfield & Langley.

He told the Daily Echo: “It has been a good experience and I really hope they can stay up because there are a lot of great people at the club.

“In an ideal world, I would have hoped for us to be safe a few weeks ago so I could have stepped down earlier and the club could have started looking for a replacement. My only focus has been on trying to keep us up and I really hope we do. Nobody wants relegation on their CV and the club deserves to be in the Wessex Premier.

“There have been a lot of highs and lows but the budget has made it difficult. I sat down with the club and just felt I needed a little more than they could offer for next season.

“They said more may be available for the first couple of months but couldn’t clarify whether I could take that budget all the way through. I am ambitious and have got players in mind.”

Burnett appeared to have worked the oracle after a mid-season purple patch hoisted Linnets clear of the drop zone. However, the loss of dual registered leading goalscorer Alex Baldacchino to Poole, coupled with a glut of injuries, saw them slip back into the mire.

“We always tried to play the right way and tried to play good football,” said Burnett. “For about eight weeks, we were in the top three of the current form table. I thought a mid-table finish would be achievable but we started to fall away. I just hope we have done enough to scrape clear.”

Burnett, one of the most humourous and charismatic managers on the non-league circuit, said he did not have another position lined up but confirmed he had received a couple of tentative enquiries from other clubs.