Marcus Dinanga eyeing AFC Telford goal rush

The 20-year-old wasted no time in setting himself an ambitious target for the campaign after getting off the mark in just his second appearance to earn the Bucks a 1-0 win at Darlington on Saturday.

Birmingham-based Dinanga, who has joined on a season-long youth loan from Burton, netted 34 goals for Matlock Town last term in the Evo-Stik Northern Premier Division and sees no reason why he can’t do just as well one level higher in the National League North.

“I want to score 30 goals again this season,” he said. “I know I am a bit behind having missed the first few games but I’m confident I can catch up.

“People might think it is an ambitious target but I always back myself. I scored goals last season against defences at this level and higher in the FA Trophy for Matlock so I should be able to do that again.”

He added: “It was great to get off the mark on Saturday. I was eager to score as quickly as possible so the manager doesn’t start thinking about bringing any other strikers in.”

Dinanga, who signed a new deal with the Brewers during the summer, was courted by Kidderminster Harriers and Salford City among others.

But he opted for the Bucks after being impressed by the club’s set-up when he played for 45 minutes against Shrewsbury in pre-season.

“Once I had played for Telford in that game I wanted to join them because I can see myself scoring goals here,” he said.

“There were other clubs interested but this felt like the right fit for me, what with being able to train four times a week and being pretty close to home.

“I like the manager and think we’ve got a pretty good team. It’s still very early in the season and we are still getting to know each other but we play good football and I’m confident we can go far.”