CARL FORSTER is already thinking about the 2025 campaign for the North Wales Crusaders.

Crusaders’ head coach Forster brought the curtain down on his playing career as North Wales defeated Cornwall 40-10 to end their League One campaign on a winning note.

In the end, Crusaders missed out on a spot in the League One play-offs by just two points, but Forster is sure this will not be the case in 12 months’ time.

He told the club’s Facebook page: “The way the team’s shaping and the way the club’s going, I’ll be quite confident in myself and in the group... that we won’t be scrapping around for a seventh place finish.

“I think we’ll be up there in the table.

“I’m not going to go out there and say we’re going to do an Oldham.

“But, you know, I do believe we’ll be fighting at the right end of the table rather than the wrong end.”

A brilliant end to last season saw North Wales battle their way through to the grand final of the play-offs, but Forster believes this affected the current campaign.

“There’s a slight relief, only because I do believe the squad will probably benefit from finishing next week rather than going on another five, six weeks like we did last year and last year kind of probably put us on the back foot this year,” he added.

“So, 90 per cent of our recruitment’s done. We’re in such a healthy place.”