IAN Rowe says he is ready to take on the challenge of turning around Gornal Athletic’s fortunes.

The former Dudley Town boss was unveiled as the new man in charge at the Garden Walk Stadium on Monday while the club has a new chairman in the shape of Nick Sanders.

Rowe spent two-and-a-half years as Robins’ boss, twice guiding them to fifth in the West Midlands Premier. Gornal finished the season in 17th spot under the guidance of caretaker manager Simon Williams.

But the club believe ambitious Rowe could herald a new dawn and have also unveiled plans to revamp the playing surface and clubhouse at the Garden Walk.

Rowe said: “It’s exciting although I am obviously a little apprehensive having spent so long at Dudley.

“It’s a new challenge for me and Gornal have the sort of things as a club that I wanted.

“Obviously the club has struggled in the league for the last couple of seasons and I’m not going to come in and make any bold statements of where we will finish.

“But the committee are happy for us to concentrate on the football side of things and I’m confident we can do well.”

Rowe will meet with the current Gornal playing staff later this week and put plans in place before he departs on paternity leave.

He will be joined at the Garden Walk by his coaching staff from Dudley Town and hopes to bring several players across from the Dell too.

Rowe left the Robins saying it would be difficult to take them any further while the club remains without a ground of its own.

At Gornal he believes he has everything required to make that step.

He added: “It’s everything I wanted, it’s a base, a foundation, they have got their own clubhouse and own ground.

“These are the things we were lacking at Dudley Town. The little things which make a difference on team bonding.

“That’s not a knock on Dudley Town because it’s a great club run by great people.

“It was ultimately a football decision.”

Sanders first became involved at Gornal when his son played in the youth teams and says he was impressed by the “effort and passion” of the club.

He said: “We are looking to get the football up to the highest standard we can.

“The investment in the pitch will help while we are also looking to engage some more sponsors.

“We have to be realistic that these things cost money and it is important we build the base of the club first.”

Meanwhile, Williams is set to stay at the club as youth team manager.

Gornal will host an open meeting at 7.30pm this Friday at the Garden Walk stadium to discuss the plans. All members of the club and local community are welcome to attend.