DAVID Flitcroft has revealed that Mansfield Town’s drive and ambition is what swayed him to quit his post at Swindon Town in order to join the Stags.

Flitcroft, who took charge of 42 Swindon fixtures since joining the club last June, was unveiled as Mansfield’s new manager at a press conference at the One Call Stadium on Thursday.

Ben Futcher, who acted as Flitcroft’s assistant at the Energy Check County Ground, has also moved north after the clubs agreed a compensation package for the duo’s services.

The move was sparked by the resignations of Stags boss Steve Evans and his assistant, Paul Raynor, from their positions on Tuesday in order to join League One side Peterborough United.

Explaining how his sudden switch happened, Flitcroft stated he first received a phone call on Wednesday revealing that he had been ‘head hunted’ by the Nottinghamshire club.

“It was a case of speaking to the chairman (John Radford) and Carolyn (Radford, chief executive) to see what the plans and ambitions are,” said Flitcroft.

“It’s the warmth. I felt the appreciation and they made it known they wanted to take me on as the club’s next manager to get them out of the division.

“I’m delighted to be the new manager of Mansfield Town.”

Flitcroft has already stolen six points away from Mansfield’s grasp this season.

During his reign at the County Ground, Flitcroft’s Town men beat Mansfield 3-1 in October before earning a 1-0 victory at the home only last month.

And being applauded off the pitch following Town’s win at the One Call Stadium stands out in Flitcroft’s mind.

He said: “When I last came to Mansfield, we got applauded off the pitch. I’ve not had that before as an opposition manager.

“The drive and the ambition from the chairman, the vision - they have attracted me.

“The place is thriving. I can feel that.

“I know I’ll get support and with that we can achieve something special.”

Flitcroft’s assistant at Town, Futcher, has also made the move, with the 44-year-old describing his long-time number two as one of the “hardest working guys in football”.

He said: “Myself and Ben are from footballing families.

“We’ve both got the same values as the chairman and Carolyn. We live for football, we’re football nuts.

“It’s a fantastic squad built with two players for every position.”

Futcher added: “I had a brief spell on loan at Mansfield and I’ve mentioned to the chairman how much it’s changed, developed and moved forward.

“David told me about the interest and I said it’s a fantastic place to be. With the squad we’ve got, it will be an exciting end to the season.

“You can feel the energy. We’ve been made to feel very welcome.”

Meanwhile Mansfield chairman John Radford confirmed Flitcroft was always his number one target after Evans quit his post earlier this week.

Radford approached Town chairman Lee Power before entering talks with Flitcroft and described the hours following that first conversation with the former Barnsley and Bury boss as ‘manic’.

He said: “We had a target list and David was our number one target.

“I must say a big thank you to Swindon for the way they’ve conducted themselves.

“I spoke to their chairman and asked for permission to speak to David. He allowed me to do that and we agreed terms.

“At 4pm on Wednesday we spoke to David and it’s been manic since then. We wanted the right man in place as soon as possible.

“He’s beat us twice already this season, I’m so happy to have him on board.”