Mickey Demetriou targets League One spot with Newport County

Demetriou has revealed that he did have offers follow Joe Day and Dan Butler through the exit door at Rodney Parade following the League Two play-off final defeat in May.

But he didn’t want his last memory as a County player to be the agony of last-gasp defeat at Wembley.

The 29-year-old centre-back is convinced that he’s made the right decision by signing a new two-year deal and he’s confident that the Exiles can win promotion as he looks ahead to the 2019-2020 campaign.

“It’s good to be back, I’m really enjoying it,” said Demetriou after Wednesday’s 1-0 friendly win over Shrewsbury Town, one of his former clubs.

“Everyone would have had offers [to move on] because of how well we did [last season]. If I told you I didn’t, I’d be lying.

“I did have a couple of offers that I had to think about but, at the end of the day, I think I’ve made the right decision.

“I could have gone into the league above but I don’t think it was right for me – I want to do that with Newport.

“There’s lots of potential here,” he added. “We’ve only lost two players.

“Obviously, Joe and Buts will be massive to replace. They are big shoes to fill but we’ve kept the core of the squad and hopefully we can go one better next year.”

The pain of that extra-time defeat to Tranmere Rovers at Wembley is a powerful motivating factor for Demetriou ahead of the new season.

“It was heart-breaking,” he said. “It was a horrible way to lose and that’s one of the reasons why I stayed – because I’ve got unfinished business here.

“I didn’t want it to end like it did at Wembley. It just wouldn’t have been right to leave at that time.”

Not that he blames Day and Butler for joining Championship club Cardiff City and League One outfit Peterborough United respectively.

“It would have been so much easier if we’d gone up because we would have been close to keeping everyone together,” said Demetriou.

“But, obviously, the moves that Joe and Buts have got are very deserving and they can go on from there.

“Peterborough are going to be a very good side and Buts could go on and do very well. The sky’s the limit with him because he’s such a good player.

“And Joe could go back into the Premier League with Cardiff, so they are massive moves for them.

“Nobody holds any grudges because they’ve done unbelievably for us for the last two or three years.

“I’m sure if I’d left it would have been disappointing for the fans, but I’m sure they would have understood it because everyone wants to play at the highest level.

“But I think I’ve made the right choice in thinking this is the right place to do it.”