BOBBY Wilkinson labelled Weymouth’s escape from the clutches of Vanarama National League South relegation as his “number one” managerial achievement.

Wilkinson’s CV includes silverware with previous club Bracknell, two promotions with Hungerford and an FA Trophy semi-final journey with Wealdstone.

But he lists Weymouth’s survival in the National League South as his greatest moment, following the 2-0 win over Dover on Saturday.

Coming into the club in September, with the Terras winless in eight games, Wilkinson then managed to keep Weymouth up despite needing to bridge a seven-point gap to safety with three games to go.

Asked by Echosport where his work with the Terras stands in his career achievements, he said: “People might find this hard to believe.

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“I’ve won championships and promotions but this is number one.

“The manager does take everyone else on his shoulders. If we’d lost I’d have felt like I let everyone down, the board, my kids. That’s not nice.

“That’s the privilege and pressure I put on myself. So, it’s my number one. It’ll be something I never, ever forget.

“It’s the most pressure I’ve ever been under, I will say that.”

Wilkinson is contracted at Weymouth until the end of the 2025/26 season.

And the former Reading coach backed himself to bring Weymouth up through the divisions, while paying credit to Paul Maitland and Simon Etherington for their work in stabilising the club’s finances.

He said: “That’s where I give Paul and Simon all the credit, because it wasn’t great behind the scenes.

“We’ve got some fantastic board members, fantastic leaders. I just know the club’s going forward.

“I would never have signed my new deal if I didn’t think we were going forward.

“What people didn’t know is that I would never have signed if I didn’t think we’d stay up. Why would I?

“I believe in this club, I believe in the people I’m working with. And, I’ll never be in that position (fighting relegation) again.

“If we are, it won’t be through a lack of hard work or dedication. I want National League football.

“I didn’t come here to play National League South football, I came to one of the biggest clubs in non-League to take them where they want to go.

“When I get to the National League, then I want to take them to the League. I want to take us right where we deserve to be.”

Speaking to uptheterras.co.uk, Wilkinson added: “This is only one stage of what I came here to do. I want to get us back in the National League.

“I know it’s going to be difficult next year but the way the board have supported me and helped me through a hard time, and I helped them through a hard time, we came together.”

Wilkinson later gave a shoutout to his family for lending their support during his first season with Weymouth.

Wilkinson has notoriously phoned assistant Mike Percival to discuss tactics and team changes in the early hours.

And the ex-Bracknell boss thanked his loved ones for putting up with his insatiable work ethic this season.

He said: “I’m so pleased, my boys, my daughter and my wife, what they put up with is not a nice place to live some days.

“There is constant pressure in this job, but I told you I was going to do, even through the hard times.

“Guess what, when you’re at the bottom of the league there’s always going to be hard times. You’ve got to be mentally tough.

“Never react, stay classy all the time and just keep driving forward. By the way, if we’d failed it wouldn’t have changed anything.

“I’m still going home to bed and then I’ll start preparing for next year. We’re staying in this league and then we’ll start competing.”