BASINGSTOKE Town FC’s manager Terry Brown hailed his Hampshire Senior Cup final hero after it was announced goalkeeper Alex Tokarczyk has left the club.

After being unable to keep Tokarczyk on his budget for next year, Brown thanked the former Reading and Falkirk player for his vital contribution to a difficult season at the Camrose.

The 24-year-old keeper had a starring role in this month’s Hampshire Senior Cup, where Town saw off Bournemouth Under-23s on penalties at St Mary’s Stadium in Southampton.

More than 1,500 spectators saw Tokarczyk save two spot-kicks as Basingstoke claimed their seventh Senior Cup crown with a 7-6 shootout win.

“He’s a very, very good keeper looking to playing at the next level,” Brown told The Gazette.

“Alex is now way above our wage budget, which has become difficult to keep players on now that we’re full-time, but we look forward to playing against him and bumping into him in the FA Cup next year.”

He added: “I thought he had an outstanding season, which culminated in that trophy win, and for us Alex was a good lad.”

With the season now complete, Brown has turned his attention to the 2017/18 campaign – which will now see Town play at the Camrose.

However, without confirmation of how much funds he will have to play with next season, Brown is still waiting to see who he can bring in.

“We’re looking to bring in two or three new faces for the new campaign,” Brown said.

“We’ve earmarked those players, but until we’ve got them signed up and my budget has been given then I won’t know.

“We’ve got this great core here so we want to use this as the core of next year’s squad.

“But it’s almost impossible to look that far forward until money has been agreed.”

Five pre-season games for Town have been confirmed, with the most enticing fixtures – which includes a visit from Crystal Palace Under-23s and Eastleigh – taking place during July at the Camrose.